Paternal Bonds New and Redone
by Nature9000
Summary: The other side. Covering the ten years prior to PATERNAL BONDS. The story is told of those who tried to save Sam, of her life in captivity, as well as the story of the mysteries surrounding everybody around her.
1. Something Snaps

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N **READ THIS**: This was a response to a review, I decided to put it up in this author note instead of the prior note I had up. This version of PB is told from Sam's perspective. It's everything PB was and MORE. There are going to be a few minor and MAJOR changes I'm making, since reading PB I've discovered a few inconsistancies and a few upsets in reality. I've also thought of some plot stuff that would have made for a better plot and explanation for why certain things happened.

So, in short this PB should be much better and different. So there will be some minor changes, such as after ten years, Sam not knowing why the bad guys were there. Sure I did it for suspense, but let's be real, etn years, she's going to know. And obviously, Valerie's not going to be cruel all those ten years. Another, more applicable approach to why Jonah couldn't get in touch with Carly for ten years and why nothing happened for ten years will also be explained. So I'm hoping people will read this, because it will be everything PB was, plus more. There's going to be a MAJOR thing going on surrounding that mysterious first child that Sam had.

So, if you liked PB, you will LOVE THIS STORY. You don't really have to read the origional paternal bonds either, but it might be good since I don't plan on going as indepth with Freddie's side during the time that the origional Paternal Bonds took place. However you will know what he and the others are doing in this story, so reading the origional is entirely up to you.

Chapter 1 (Something Snaps Inside)

Hector Puckett, Jeremy Rodriquez, Gibby Gibson, and Nevel Papperman. Four very different people, with different lives, each turned to the darker side of life with a common dislike. What was it that made them tick, somewhere inside, they snapped. We will discover what led these four into their life of crime, leading up to their most final event.

Nevel sat in his chair, a darkened glare on his face as he stared at the iCarly gang performing yet another webshow. His latest attempt had been foiled. For him, it just kept getting worse and worse, the anger inside his head just couldn't take the pressure anymore, and he lashed out. The first to bear the brunt of his anger was his porcupine, Mr. Tibbals. The poor creature was merely eating from his dish, doing nothing wrong, but Nevel saw this as a crime. Nothing ever went his way. "Tibbals, I didn't want you to eat yet!" Nevel shouted as he slammed his hands on the desk. The creature looked up at him helplessly as he quickly stood up.

"I wasn't ready, I don't give you that until three o'clock _sharp_, You know that!" Nevel shouted and took an angry step forward, pointing at the clock. "It is only two-fifty! Two-_fifty!_ That's ten minutes too soon!" Tibbals continued to eat, and Nevel grasped his hair angrily. Why couldn't he even control a damn porcupine? Without control, he had _nothing_. "Damn you for not following orders!" Control. That was something that seemed to be missing from his life. He couldn't control anyone or anything. One thing he knew he'd like to control was the mouth on that Sam Puckett, but that would never happen. Nevel quickly took a nearby rod and hit Tibbals with it, knocking the porcupine into a wall. "This will teach you to not follow _my_ instruction!" Tibbals whimpered and his body shivered as he looked up to Nevel, his owner's eyes seemed red with malice and rage. It was clear, as Nevel lifted the rod in the air, that he was gone.

Gibby grunted as he bathed his red and bloody hand under the water in the sink, Sam had gotten him again. She meant no harm, but when she slammed that locker door on his hand, it hurt like hell and broke his skin. He pulled some hydrogen peroxide from his backpack, something he'd been carrying around with him lately, and started pouring it on his hand, shouting as the pain stung him. "It burns! Damn it!"

He set the bottle on the sink and held his hand out from the water for a second. His chest heaved as he stared at his bloody hand, he still wasn't done medicating it. "She's gone too far this time..." That seemed to be what he said everytime, was that she'd gone too far. He sighed and poured some more of the peroxide on the wound, shouting out in agony. Why the hell did it have to hurt so bad? Why did Sam have to be the way she was?

"Ooh, how I'd like to wipe that damn smirk off her face. Whatever it takes to get her to stop torturing _me…_"Gibby frowned and reached into his backpack, grabbing out a roll of gauze. He was using up too much of this these days. He didn't realize that something got into his blood and already seemed to be affecting him, tuning into his more aggressive side. He growled and clenched up his fist. He never struck a girl before, but sometimes, Sam made him want to do this. He always resisted the urge to smack her down before. "Wonder how much fun it'd be to smack _her_ around for once would be…" He looked at himself in the mirror and growled angrily, raising his unwounded fist and slamming it into the mirror, shattering the glass. He screamed out as several shards cut him.

Jeremy sat on the school steps, blowing his nose and sneezing. He was tired of this illness, it was messing with him in so many ways. It felt like every time he sneezed, a million of his brain cells were getting tossed about. Whether or not that was true, was another story. "Why can't I be a healthy kid?" Jeremy slowly stood up and groaned as he found himself needing to blow his nose again. Luckily for him, he kept a pack of tissues with him at all times. It was embarrassing as hell, but he really, honestly, had no choice. "Shit…"

He looked up to see Sam laughing at him, like she did every single day. She called him 'Germy' and went on her way, laughing it up with Carly and Freddie. Jeremy narrowed his eyes and growled, crumpling his tissue in his hand. How he hated them, he hated everyone. Jealousy ran thickly through his vein as he eyed Sam. How dare they be healthy and he be constantly sick, it wasn't right, it wasn't fair!

"This is a living nightmare for me, you'll never understand. You'll never know what a nightmare is!" Sam looked back with a blank expression and scoffed.

"Whatever Germy, put a sock in it," Sam said quietly. Her face then twisted into a smirk and she laughed. "Oh that's right, if you did that you'd suffocate because you'd be breathing the sock into your throat!" Jeremy growled and his fists tightened, his knuckles glowing a brighter red. He couldn't _stand_ her.

"I'd like to shove a sock down _your_ throat." He turned around and started walking away. God he hated her, but then, he hated most of the people in this world. If there was a god out there, then surely that sentient being would bestow upon him an angel, a way out of this misery.

Hector Puckett, the bad boy getting released from prison after several years in jail for the sexual assault and child molestation of a twelve year old girl. He was being released on good behavior. He knew father's day was coming up, so he would definitely have to pay a visit to his beloved daughter. Although, his wife, Amy, probably wouldn't want him anywhere near them.

He didn't think he was such a bad guy though, he'd changed since his years in prison. Or, that was what many people thought. He would make a full turn-around, there was no doubt about that. "Bye Hector, have fun in the outside world!" A fellow inmate shouted out joyously. Hector smiled and waved off the inmate.

"Thanks," Hector replied. He pushed his hands into his pockets as he walked out to a group of police officers. He smiled gracefully as they started on his paperwork. Glancing out the window, he couldn't help but to notice how beautiful it was. The grass was green, the sky was blue, and he just couldn't wait to get out there. "It's a beautiful day, isn't it officers?"

"Sure it is, Puckett," One of the officers said without caring. They sighed and handed him a pen. "Just sign here and be on your way."

"Thank you." Hector signed on the line and gathered up everything that was needed. He then left the jail and sighed, he wasn't entirely sure what he was going to do. First things first, he most likely needed to rent a car. He tried to think of what he could do for work, maybe being an editor or a publisher could be a good idea. He had to think small for now, though, since he'd just gotten out of prison. He started walking, unsure of where he was headed at the moment. After a few minutes, he stopped when he heard someone sneeze.

"Damn it," The youth said with a groan. Hector looked over to see a sixteen year old boy dressed in a suit standing next to a car, he was sneezing into a tissue. The boy sighed and tossed the tissue on the ground, not giving a damn about littering regulations. "Hector Puckett, I assume?"

"Yes, that's me, what do you want?"

"Hi, I'm Jeremy Rodriquez." Jeremy extended his hand and Hector shook it, he was always up to meeting new people. "It's a pleasure meeting you."

"Yeah, it's nice to meet you too." Jeremy had taken a recent interest in this man and the events surrounding his case. Hell, if anything, it was possible this man could be the very answer he sought. This was Sam's dad. It didn't look like Sam was going anywhere other than the same trail of her father, so she was just like him, trash. She was nothing to this world. All he had to do was strike a bone within Hector, and perhaps they could collaborate a scheme so deadly, that they could finally shut her up for good.

"So what do you intend to do when you go home, Mr. Puckett?"

"See my wife and my kid, I guess."

"Weren't you abusive at some time in your life?" Hector frowned and narrowed his eyes, he wasn't sure where Jeremy was headed with this. "Look, Sam's been nothing but a _bitch_, someone needs to teach that woman a lesson. Her mother isn't even raising her properly."

"Hm…"

"I'm just saying, someone needs to take care of her." Jeremy sneezed again and groaned frustratingly. "Here's what I was thinking, and I do know how to make you go with my plan too." Hector raised his eyebrows up as Jeremy reached into his pocket. "Believe me, I can screw things up for you and your world very easily." Hector slowly nodded his head and gave a gentle sigh.

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There you go, review if you will...


	2. First Goal

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N: Okay hopefully people are going to read this and review, I have faith because I know PB was a popular story. So far it seems no one's bothered to look at it.

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Chapter 2 (First Goal)

Hector stepped into the home of a friend of his, a man by the name of Victor Oswin. Victor was an old friend, someone that he knew he could confide in. Victor worked as a major publicist, so he could get Hector a job. It was all about having connections. "So you're wanting a job as an editor?" Victor asked while sipping his beer.

"Either that or a publicist, yes," Hector replied while sitting on the couch. He needed to be able to make some money to live off of. He would do _anything_ to make a full turnaround with his life, in regards to his money. "I am very literate, as you do know." Victor nodded his head and looked into his fireplace, where a raging fire was. He didn't have any problem getting him a job, having him be a partner in his company. After all, Hector would make a lot of money. "If you work with me, you know how major we are, right? The Chesterton Publishing Company…anyone we publish usually goes on to become great things."

"Yeah, I understand that."

"That means you have to take great care and pride in all works that you see. We can't publish just anyone, you know." Hector nodded once more as Victor set his glass on the table and leaned back in his recliner. He pulled the footrest out and placed his legs on it. "Hector, anyone we publish, we earn a profit in royalties. You could be making millions just as quickly as an author does. So if you're really sure you want to become a publisher, then you do need to know the perks and the downfalls. Is this job for you, and so forth? That's the question you need to ask yourself."

"Yes, I want the job." Victor nodded and smiled at his friend. He and Hector both rose from their seats and shook each other's hands.

"Then I'll put you on as my business partner. Everything we do Hector, we're going to have to do together. I'll have to watch you for the first few weeks, you understand. I have to make sure you're going to do your job right and well." He had the faith that Hector could handle the job, but now he just needed to see that.

"I'll do a damn good job. By the way, can I make a phone call? Father's day is coming up and I need to call my ex…" Victor nodded and pointed towards the phone and Hector thanked him while picking it up and dialing Amy. "Hey Amy, I'm out of jail now and would like to come see you and Sam."

"Oh, you're…out now?" Amy asked, with an unsure voice. She was both happy for him and terrified of him. She actually wasn't sure if she wanted him to come around her or around Sam, something was just giving her bad vibes. However, Sam was looking forward to seeing her father for the first time in years, so she couldn't deny her that right.

"Yeah, and just in time for father's day too!" Amy frowned and slowly nodded her head. Why the hell did she have such bad feelings about this man? Had he not been released on good behavior? Surely he wouldn't bring anyone any harm, so what was she afraid of? "With it in a few days, I thought I'd come pay you guys a visit now. Did you hear I'm getting a job?"

"Oh? Where at?"

"I'm going to be partnering up with my old friend, Victor, at the Chesterton Publishing Company." Amy nodded and smiled slightly, happy to see that Hector wanted to pursue a career in the field of writing.

"If you want, I guess you could come over for dinner tonight. That's up to you, but why don't you go and surprise Sam? They're at Carly's house with Carly's and Freddie's dads."

"Okay, I'll be sure to do that." Hector smiled as he and Amy said their farewells. For some reason, he had a bad feeling churning inside his gut. Something just didn't sit right with him. "So Victor, if you don't mind…for just a couple of days, can I stay here? I don't think Amy's going to let me stay with her and the kid."

"Yeah, that's fine," Victor replied nonchalantly. He really didn't care where Hector stayed.

"Thank you for your hospitality. I'm going to go, I want to meet up with my daughter."

"Have a good time." Hector nodded and quickly left the house. As he made his way to Bushwell Plaza, he ran into Jeremy once again. He frowned as the boy walked up to him, revenge set in his eyes. Hector wasn't really sure what to make of him, he just seemed all around like a bad seed.

"You again, what do you want from me? I'm still not sure I want to torture her for you…I mean she is my daughter."

"Oh is she?" Hector raised his eyebrow as Jeremy slowly pulled a picture from his pocket. He frowned as the youth silently lifted the picture. Hector's eyes went wide and his palms began to grow sweaty. The picture was of the girl he molested years ago. He'd pushed those memories back, so he could become a better person. "Maybe you can think of her like this girl…"

"No! You don't know what you're doing…" Hector looked away as Jeremy smirked dangerously, he'd hit a spot. He then faced Hector once more and put the picture in his face. Hector groaned and took a step back, all the memories were flooding back.

"This girl looks a lot like Sam…" Jeremy knew it wasn't Sam, he knew well enough however, that the girl was similar in appearance. She had curly blonde hair and similar features. Hell, she was even the same height. Her name was Brenda, though, and that was not like Sam. "Maybe it _is_ Sam. I want you to think about that." He wanted to see what it would be like to awaken the beast, to awaken the demon. "Think about the girl that got away. Sam…Sam is not your daughter, she is this girl."

"No, damn you…" Hector quickly walked past Jeremy, trying to get away from him. Jeremy smirked and bowed his head, now he would work on building up the perfect team. Soon, he would get his perfect revenge on all the trauma Sam inflicted. Sam, and all those other jackasses out there who tortured him for years. She would represent every last one of them. He just needed to coax an ex criminal to help him out. After all, what hell would it be when your own _father_ tortures the hell out of you?

Hector made his way to Carly's apartment, ignoring Jeremy. He knocked and smiled as the door started to open. Carly stared at him and blinked, not recognizing who he was. "Who are you?" Carly asked while tilting her head to the side.

"I'm Hector Puckett, Amy told me that Sam would be here…"

"Oh! You're Sam's dad!" Spencer and his father, Steven, were standing around a sculpture. Spencer was showing it off while Steven was trying to talk to him about sculpting _and_ finishing law school. Spencer looked over at Hector and frowned, now something just really wasn't sitting right with even him. He shrugged it off and went back to what he was doing. Freddie was seated on the couch while his father talked to him, although he was doing his best to ignore his father. "Sam! Your dad's here!"

"Dad?" Sam's voice called from upstairs. She quickly made her way down the stairs and stopped when she saw him. She smiled as he locked his eyes with her. "Dad you're here."

"Amy told me you were here." Sam smiled as Hector entered the house. She quickly ran up to him and gave him a hug, she was thrilled to see him finally out of prison. Carly leaned against the wall and smiled as she crossed her arms over, it was nice that Sam got to see her father.

Something wasn't right, though. Hector couldn't bear to look at his daughter. Had what that kid, Jeremy, said and done affected him? No, it couldn't be. Sam did look like that girl, and it was messing with him. He closed his eyes tightly and tried to push the thoughts back, but he couldn't. He was losing it, slowly his grip on reality was vanishing.

"Dad are you all right?" Hector opened his eyes to see Sam looking at him cautiously. He smiled and patted her shoulder.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks." Henry Benson looked over from the couch and stared at Hector for a minute. Henry had a goal to become the chief of police one day, but right now, he was just a rank above Lieutenant. He recognized Hector and knew why he had been in prison, but he wasn't going to say anything of it. It seemed like he wanted to make a solid plan to turn around.

"So," Carly said as she pushed herself from the wall. "Mr. Puckett, what'd you go in for?" Hector chuckled nervously and shook his head, he was not about to say that in front of a police agent and a bunch of kids.

"Carly, that's a rude question to ask," Freddie said while glancing over at his dad. He knew better than to ask, but he had an idea he knew what it was all about. Hell, even Sam didn't know why her father had been in prison. Carly shrugged and walked over to her dad.

"It was just a question. So, who wants the pictures for Father's Day done?" She grabbed her camera and everyone started to gather around. "Sam, let's get you and your dad first." Sam smiled and quickly stepped next to her father. He smiled as Carly started to turn the camera on.

"So if you don't mind me asking," Sam whispered quietly. "Why _did_ you go to prison? Mom never talks about it."

"I don't want to talk about it," Hector answered quietly. Sam slowly nodded and looked to the camera, she could easily respect that. She didn't know her dad much, so she just wanted to get to know him a little more.

"Say cheese, guys," Carly said as she aimed the camera upon the two. Hector and Sam grinned. This was a picture that would hopefully last forever, nobody would tear it apart. Carly snapped the photo, and just like that, the week of Father's Day was off to a great start.

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Please. Review. Hope you enjoyed this. I really hope this one isn't a flop...or that people only care about my stories if they have mostly Sam and Freddie together...which is really what it seems like lately. Except Boarded, since people are reading at it. Did the people on fanfiction really change that much? Does no one care for my type of action/adventure/drama stories anymore and all anyone wants is fluff and happiness? Cause I'm starting to notice that trend here. I am _not_ a fluff author, get used to that.


	3. A 'Prank'

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

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Chapter 3 ("Prank")

Jonah Brown and Valerie Williams, boyfriend and girlfriend, they met through Sam and Freddie and connected almost instantaneously. They've been dating for nearly two years, and they were very much in love. Literally nothing could separate them from each other. The only reason they met through Sam and Freddie, was because they had dated the two at one point of time. Jonah never did forget what Sam did to him or that Freddie beat the crap out of him afterwards, but he always felt he deserved what he got. He had been a jerk, and a horrible one at that.

Valerie had nothing against Sam, nothing against Freddie, but she did admit that she had been greatly jealous of Carly. That was why she dated Freddie, used him in order to get close to iCarly, but those days were behind her now. She was actually a great fan of the show. It was really when she saw what happened to Jonah on the show, that she and he were destined to meet.

After the incident, she was the one to go and see if he was okay. She didn't know why she did that, she just did. It was something she'd learned from her mother and her sisters, about having a good heart. She and Jonah struck up their friendship there, and remained good friends for a time before he finally decided to ask her out. At that point, they became completely inseparable.

Currently, the two were taking their fathers out to dinner. Jonah's younger sister, Olivia, was in school. Jonah's school, however, had the day off. "So, after two years, I get to meet my daughter's boyfriend," Vincent Williams said with a smile. They were seated in a booth, the fathers on one side and the happy couple on the other side. "I hope you two are being completely safe with each other…"

"Dad!" Valerie exclaimed, blushing hard. Vincent smirked as Valerie gave him a dangerous glare. She knew he was just teasing the two, but he couldn't help himself sometimes. Michael Brown laughed as he looked over at his son, he couldn't resist joining in on the joke.

"Well I don't want any grandkids anytime soon," Michael stated. Jonah then choked on his drink and looked up at Michael with embarrassment.

"D-Dad, how could you?" Jonah asked quietly. He couldn't believe his father would sink so low. The two fathers laughed as Jonah and Valerie exchanged glances. "That's it, we're taking _away_ the father's day special on your meals!"

"I think it's a little late for that, sweetie," Valerie said with a sigh. Jonah shrugged as she smiled and placed her head on his shoulder. She loved him so much, she felt she would always be safe with him, she trusted him. The fathers smiled at the sight and started drinking their drinks. "I love you so much, Jonah."

"And I love you, Valerie. You and that gigantic family of yours…" He smirked as Valerie giggled slightly. He often liked to tease her about the size of her family. With five children total, a mother and a father, seven people really made up a full house like no other. Michael cleared his throat and started to open the napkin containing his silverware.

"So Valerie, what do you intend to do when you grow up?" Michael asked. He wanted to know a bit more about the girl his son was dating. Just like Vincent wanted to know a bit more about Jonah. Valerie smiled and sat up, more than happy to talk about her future plans.

"I want to become a big time chef," Valerie said joyfully. "I already know how to cook so many amazing things!" Vincent nodded and smiled proudly at his daughter. She often did most of the cooking, and that was when he wasn't doing the cooking. His wife, Viola, was confined to a wheelchair these days, so she didn't do a lot of cooking. "My sisters tease me a lot about it, but they do think I'll make a great chef one day. In fact, what I'm working on now is perfecting a new dish called the Alaska Baked Salmon. It's a really good dish and I really want to try it."

"Well that sounds like an admirable goal. You might be bringing in the money compared to Jonah."

"Hey!" Jonah cried out defensively. His father acted like he liked Valerie better, now how fair was that? "I'll have you know that being a weapons instructor and a gunsmith will make a good amount of money!" Michael smiled at his son and slowly nodded his head, he was always proud of Jonah.

"Yeah, being a weapons specialist isn't too bad, but you got years before all that."

"True." Vincent looked up and frowned, the waiter hadn't come back yet.

"Hey Michael, would you go look for the waiter, I have to go to the restroom," Vincent said while tapping Michael on the shoulder. The man nodded and left the seat, Vincent followed quickly behind. As the two fathers went in separate directions, Jonah and Valerie smiled at each other. They gave each other a quick peck on the lips and looked over in shock as Gibby, Nevel, and Jeremy piled up in the booth in front of them.

"What do you guys want?" Jonah asked while raising an eyebrow. Gibby had some bandages on his right arm, they had to be a day old. He hoped nothing bad had happened. "Gibby, what happened to your arm?"

"I don't feel like talking about it," Gibby said quietly. Jonah could respect that, he didn't really want to bother Gibby too much about it. Nevel looked angry, as usual, but something was off. He seemed angrier. Jeremy had a scowl on his face, like he was hungry for blood.

"Jonah, we saw what happened to you on iCarly a couple years ago," Jeremy said quickly. Jonah frowned as Jeremy brought the memory back to him, he didn't really like thinking about it too much. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat while Valerie rolled her eyes, she hated that they were bringing up such an old memory. "And Valerie, how inconsiderate was it of them to _laugh_ when that monitor fell on you?" Jonah growled as Valerie looked down, hurt.

"What business is it of yours?" Jonah asked daringly. He didn't appreciate what these people were doing, coming here while they were with their fathers and bringing up old wounds.

"We don't mean to fight, we're just offering…release." Jonah and Valerie raised their eyebrows and glared at the men, unsure of what they really wanted. "You see, we're working on a…prank."

"A prank?"

"Yes, we want to prank Sam, for all the pain she's caused us, we want to develop a prank that will make her realize that she shouldn't be so cruel to others." They knew it wasn't really a prank, but they had a feeling if they said their true motives, they wouldn't get Jonah and Valerie to help. They weren't sure why, but they wanted their help in this.

"It's not going to hurt her, is it?" Valerie asked suspiciously. She didn't want anything bad to harm her. Jonah crossed his arms and tilted his head slightly.

"It shouldn't hurt at all," Nevel said with an innocent smile. Now his being there was just off completely, but then Sam _had_ done some stuff to even him. "We just want a good old fashioned prank to make her see what she's been doing to all of us." Jonah looked at Valerie and frowned, this seemed a little too suspicious for him. Although, they had to admit, a harmless prank wouldn't be too much.

"Jonah, I'll do whatever you want to do, I guess…" Jeremy looked at Jonah and smiled, he then placed a photograph on the table. Jonah's eyes widened when he spotted it, it was of him on the wedgie bounce. Valerie frowned as Jonah quickly shifted his eyes away.

"Well, I guess it couldn't hurt to prank her just this one time. I had received a beating from Freddie after that…I deserved what I got."

"So then you guys are with us?" Jeremy asked with a smile. Valerie rubbed her arm nervously and glanced to the side as Jonah shrugged and looked to his girlfriend. She knew one prank wouldn't be bad, but why did she have this sinking feeling in her gut that something was going to go horribly wrong.

"I guess…"

"Good, we'll be in contact with you." The three left the table as Valerie looked nervously at Jonah. He could tell she was scared about something.

"I don't know how I feel about this, Jonah," Valerie said quietly.

"It's one prank, what could go wrong?"

"They didn't exactly tell us what their 'prank' was." Jonah frowned and looked back at the door where the boys just left. She had a point, they didn't tell them anything.

Just then, the fathers returned with the waiter. The waiter was apologetic, he'd been very busy. He was now ready to take their orders. Once everyone gave the orders, the waiter left and the group looked at the table. The picture was still there. The fathers frowned, remembering the event, and Valerie quickly shoved the photo into her purse. She was going to destroy it later.

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I put this in the first chapter, but some have already started reading this so they probably won't look at the first chapter, so I'll put it here as well:

This version of PB is told from Sam's perspective. It's everything PB was and MORE. There are going to be a few minor and MAJOR changes I'm making, since reading PB I've discovered a few inconsistancies and a few upsets in reality. I've also thought of some plot stuff that would have made for a better plot and explanation for why certain things happened.

So, in short this PB should be much better and different. So there will be some minor changes, such as after ten years, Sam not knowing why the bad guys were there. Sure I did it for suspense, but let's be real, etn years, she's going to know. And obviously, Valerie's not going to be cruel all those ten years. Another, more applicable approach to why Jonah couldn't get in touch with Carly for ten years and why nothing happened for ten years will also be explained. So I'm hoping people will read this, because it will be everything PB was, plus more. There's going to be a MAJOR thing going on surrounding that mysterious first child that Sam had.

So, if you liked PB, you will LOVE THIS STORY. You don't really have to read the origional paternal bonds either, but it might be good since I don't plan on going as indepth with Freddie's side during the time that the origional Paternal Bonds took place. However you will know what he and the others are doing in this story, so reading the origional is entirely up to you.


	4. Kidnapping

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N: COME ON PEOPLE, why is nobody reading this? PATERNAL BONDS was my most popular story, this takes that story and makes it BETTER, NEWER, You'd think you'd be interested in this. Or is it because Sam and Freddie aren't together from the start or something? They ARE. God this is frustrating, doing so well on a story, putting it up and nobody even gives much of a glance. Thanks to the few people who actually _have_ reviewed it. I guess the newer generation of iCarly readers just want fluff...guess what, I'm an action/adventure/drama person, I WON'T WRITE FLUFF. Why can't anyone at least show they appreciate a good, well written story? Whatever, just read...

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Chapter 4 (The Kidnapping)

Hector sat on the couch and looked into the kitchen where Amy was. She was making some brownies. Tomorrow was father's day, but today was going to be the most hectic day of his life. As each day passed, his mind and view of Sam just seemed to twist in all directions. Damn that Jeremy, he was growing more and more annoyed with the boy. "Amy, I'm going to head to the store for a little while."

"All right, but Sam should be home soon," Amy said with a smile. Hector nodded and left the house. He entered the car Victor had bought for him and started driving off. He wasn't really going to the store, he didn't know where he wanted to go. He just had to think. Amy didn't want Sam to know what he'd done, she didn't want Sam to find out, since it seemed the girl looked up to her father. Hector seemed to be making a change, so that was a plus, right? He was going to take Sam to the movies, and Amy was going to let him, although she still wasn't comfortable with it for some reason.

After a few minutes of driving, he noticed a car following him. He frowned when he saw the driver was Jeremy. He closed his eyes and slowly pulled into a nearby parking lot. The two exited the car and Jeremy smirked proudly. "So, you're going to kidnap her from the movies today, right?" Jeremy asked surely. He was looking forward to torturing the crap out of Sam.

"Yeah, but just how long do you plan to do this?" Hector asked while crossing his arms. He'd been affected to the point that he just didn't care anymore. He was willing to torture his own daughter. After all, she'd been raised to treat others like shit, she needed to be raised differently.

"So what do you think of her mother?"

"It's time to relieve her of her parental duties."

"Good. Now we're going to raise her for the remainder of her life. Her days are numbered." Hector slowly nodded and looked at his watch, the movie started in about an hour. Now Jeremy wasn't planning on Hector to do anything other than kidnapping Sam, but he was messing with fire. He should never have awakened Hector's pained memories. "Now get going."

"Victor's ordered me to bring her to his place. We'll keep her in the basement until he finds a better place for all of us to stay in." He had no choice but to bring up what had been going on with his boss. Victor, like him, had some issues in his day, so he sympathized with Hector.

The drive back to Amy and Sam's home, Hector basically lost it. The evil inside of him had been creeping up for so long, and now it seems it finally surfaced. He was going to do what he wanted and was not about to take orders from Jeremy. However, he'd let Jeremy have his cake for a little while before he made sure to bring the group down under _his_ control. Once he pulled up in the driveway and started walking towards the door when it opened and Sam waved happily. "Dad! It's so good to see you!"

"You're back so soon," Amy said with a halfhearted smile. She really didn't know what to make of his sudden return, she hoped he'd stay at the store for a little while longer. Hector smiled at her and then smiled at Sam.

"Well you know I just wanted to spend some time with my daughter. Now before we go, would you like me to make you a ham and cheese sandwich?" Sam licked her lips and nodded, she would love a sandwich. Amy sighed and stepped aside, letting Hector move to the kitchen. Something seemed different about him, but she couldn't place it. She wasn't too worried though, she had to keep telling herself that he was a changed man and she wasn't right to deny Sam the right to spend time with the father she never knew.

"Now you be good at the movies, okay?" Amy asked with a smile as she gave Sam a hug. She was so proud of the strong woman Sam was growing up to be. "Don't kick anyone's seat and don't throw popcorn at anybody. Do you understand me?"

"Yes mom, I will be good." Sam laughed as Hector returned with the sandwich. Sam cheered and grabbed the sandwich, eating it with haste. She just wanted to go see the movies. Amy smiled and crossed her arms, she was so thrilled to see Sam so happy. She couldn't break her daughter's heart and tell her the kind of man her father had been. Besides, he seemed so different now. When Sam finished the sandwich, she looked at Hector and grinned. "Okay Dad, let's go! I want to see the monsters!" Amy chuckled and rolled her eyes, after so many years of not letting her daughter see R-rated movies, this was what it came to, her Ex-husband taking Sam to see a horror movie.

"Well you have fun and tell me all about the movie when you get home."

"I will mom!" Hector and Sam started to walk out the door, but Amy wasn't quite ready to see them go.

"Oh, and Hector!" He stopped and looked back, his hand resting firmly on the doorknob. "Have her back soon, preferably right after the movie ends." He smiled and nodded as he shut the door. Amy stared in silence at the closed front door. Suddenly, Sam's face appeared so vividly in her mind. The memories of Sam started coming to her mind, it was strange. They started with Sam as a toddler, playing with a toy car, then went through her aging. These were the memories of her that Amy never wanted to forget, the precious memories of her daughter. Her heart wrenched and a foreign tear left her eye, she wiped it away and frowned in confusion. Why the hell was she so fearful?

The movie was looking like it would be a good movie, but oddly nobody was there. This was perfect for Hector, who had become so distorted. It was during the previews that it happened, that he finally snapped and let the demon in him take him over completely. There was nobody in the theatre to hear, over the previews and the movie itself, the screams of Sam Puckett, who had stolen a slip of paper from her mom's records and discovered all too late who her father really was.

After it was done, Hector stood above Sam's unconscious form on the ground in between the aisle of chairs. His hands twitched and shook violently as he looked over at the movie playing. On the screen was the shadowy silhouette of a dangerous, violent monster. Damn that Jeremy. Hector flipped open the phone and contacted Mr. Oswin. "Victor, it's me, Hector."

"You've kidnapped her already?" Victor asked with a frown. He was laying back in a pool chair and sipping a margarita.

"Yeah, but…"

"What else is there?"

"I went too far, and it feels pretty good actually." Victor thought for a minute and quickly sat up, realizing what it was Hector meant.

"What? You get your shitty little ass over here immediately! We're going to talk, _now!_" Hector frowned as Victor hung up the phone. He pressed his fingers together and sighed. This was the man he was allowing the use of his basement to? Shit.

"Get up Sam." Hector grabbed Sam's shirt and shook her awake. She opened her eyes and saw him, then screamed, recalling what had just been done. Her father had beaten her. "We're going to the car, we have to leave."

"Let go of me!"

"If you say anything, I will _kill_ you on the spot." Sam gasped and silenced herself as Hector dragged her out to the car. He couldn't let her run, but if she did, he'd have to chase her down. "You're not going to tell anyone about this. No, you'll be living with me from now on."

"No way, bastard! How could you do this to me? I'm your daughter!" Sam bawled and held her knees close. Her own father, the man that was supposed to be trusted, the man whose bond with his child was supposed to be so strong, had just shattered that bond. Hector growled and quickly put his hand around her throat, she gasped and stared fearfully into his angry eyes.

"You will do as I say, I will have no more of the way you treat everyone else."

"What?"

"I'm going to teach you some manners. You will leave iCarly, leave that boyfriend of yours, leave your mother, and live with me." Sam bit her lips and shook her head, whimpering fearfully as Hector started up the car and began driving.

"No! I won't do it! I don't want to!" She didn't want to lose Freddie, she didn't want to lose Carly. It was wrong, what her father was doing to her. "I'm not going to!" She wanted her mom, she wanted her mom to hold her. To hug her. She sobbed and started to try and open the door. Hector growled and stepped on the brake, causing Sam's body to jerk forward and her head to hit the dashboard. "Ah!"

"You have _no_ choice in the matter!" He grabbed her hair and pulled her head back, then slapped her across the face. He needed to break her, that was what Jeremy and the others wanted to do as well. "From here on out, you listen to _me_. Do you understand?"

"B-But…please…"

"I said do you understand me!"

"Yes!" Fearing another attack, she immediately agreed with him. He locked the doors and started driving off. She whimpered and moved against the door, she couldn't take this. She looked back as they passed her street, she wasn't going home. He wasn't taking her home! She sobbed and closed her eyes as she thought of her mother. Would she ever see her mom again?

"Tomorrow, I will allow you to say goodbye to Freddie and Carly, nothing more. You will not be permitted to tell them where you are at, do you understand me?"

"Y-Yes dad…" Tomorrow was supposed to be when they filmed iCarly, she didn't want to miss it. She never missed iCarly.

They made it to Victor's house and hurried inside. Victor frowned when he spotted Sam, she was too bruised up. "I can't believe you went to such extremes on the day of the abduction," Victor said disapprovingly. Usually after a kidnapping, that's when abuse would be better, but beforehand was _not_ a good idea.

"I don't want anyone to ever find me," Hector said quietly. Victor nodded as he led Hector and Sam to his basement. He could actually arranged for Hector to cover his tracks. It just involved an almost immediate promotion and constant moving around. Fortunately Victor had enough money to lend Hector a hand.

"Hector, I will make you rich." He already had his basement ready for the whole kidnapping. There were chains hanging from the walls. They put Sam's wrist in the chains and she hung there, emotionless. "Girl, would you like a drink?" Sam slowly looked up and nodded her head. Victor grabbed a bottle of water, tilted Sam's head up and started pouring the liquid into her mouth. "There, are you good?"

"Fuck you!" Sam shouted angrily. Hector rolled his eyes and slapped her across the face once more. Sam yelped and slowly shook her head, hoping it would ease her pain somehow. She felt so disgusting, she felt filthy. How could this happen to her?

"Victor, there are these kids that orchestrated all this," Hector said as he pulled his friend aside. Victor nodded and looked back to Sam, who was watching them with a fierce glare. "They want to break her spirit. I'm not sure just how long we're going to hold her, but I want to control them. I must have control over them, I don't take orders from them, that's the message I want to pass along."

"Then I know just the thing to reel them in. At least one thing." Victor grabbed a camera and pointed it to Sam. He was going to make sure nobody ever suspected Hector of these crimes and that nobody ever came around him. He was going to make Hector one of the most powerful men around. "Girl, lift your head up, we need to take your picture."

"I hate you," Sam muttered quietly. She thought this man was her father, she thought she could trust him, but as it turned out, she couldn't. Hector crossed his arms and smirked, he did feel proud of himself now. He wasn't going to go back to jail.

"Keep it up and I'm going to make sure Hector here doesn't let you see the daylight again." Sam spat at him, but it didn't reach. Victor rolled his eyes again and snapped the photo. The camera was an old polaroid, so the photo came right out. There was no need to take it to a developer. "Here, show this to those kids. They'll know what they're getting into and they can't back out now. If any of them do…kill the traitor and his family…"

"Got it."


	5. In Control

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 5 (In Control)

Jeremy, Gibby, Nevel, Jonah, and Valerie sat together in an alley where they were supposed to meet Hector. Jonah and Valerie were still greatly unsure of what they were getting into. If Sam's father was involved, then it couldn't be _too_ dangerous, right? They didn't know him, though. They didn't know what kind of man he was. Jeremy knew Jonah and Valerie seemed weak, like they could deflect from the group at any time, but he could make sure they wouldn't.

Miles away, Gibby's mother and younger brother were backed against a wall by one of Victor's hired thugs. "Stay with me, Guppy!" She held the boy in her arms while staring up at the men in her house. She didn't know what was going on, where was Gibby and why were these men attacking her and her son? The man aimed the shotgun at the two and narrowed his eyes. Nobody was going to recognize them when he was done. The screams were drowned out by the sound of gunfire.

"You know, why do I get a feeling that maybe we're messing with the wrong person?" Gibby asked as he and Jeremy hung out next to the wall. Jeremy shrugged, he didn't see anything wrong at all. They were all going to stay with Hector for a while, they'd already made their plans with him. Nevel whistled a tune and tapped his foot lightly, he was tired of waiting on this man and quickly becoming bored.

"If Hector doesn't show up soon, I'm going to just go," Nevel said with aggravation.

"You will wait as long as needed," Jeremy ordered quickly. Nevel sighed and shrugged his shoulders.

At the Papperman household, Mrs. Papperman waited alone for her son to return from wherever it was he had gone to. She didn't know much about the friends he was getting involved with, but she was thankful that he had the opportunity to finally get out of the house and play with some friends. She had the television on and didn't hear her back door creak open. She laughed at the television and didn't hear a shotgun behind her. Suddenly when the scene on the screen changed and a black screen appeared, she saw the intruder's reflection. She gasped and quickly turned around. "Who are you? What do you want?" The man grunted and pushed the gun into her mouth. She gasped and a tear rolled down her cheek as he pulled the trigger.

Jeremy cracked his neck and frowned, staring directly ahead. Why did he feel like they were becoming cemented in this deal? What could go wrong? That was what he was always thinking. He didn't give a damn about Sam, he wanted to teach her a valuable lesson which she would never forget. "Come on Hector, show up," Jeremy muttered as he breathed out. He watched the outside of the alley and frowned as all the cars passed by. "He's not late…" No, but everyone was getting way too anxious.

Jeremy's father sat at his kitchen table reading the paper and sipping his coffee, he was all that Jeremy had and Jeremy was all that he had. Together, they needed to take care of the other. Jeremy was out today, but was supposed to come home and help clean things up. Of everyone and anything in this world, this man was the one person that Jeremy could every count on. He loved his father more than life itself.

Jeremy's dad slowly rose from his seat and walked to the microwave, he'd been making a small dinner for himself. He had something on the stove, cooking for when Jeremy returned home. He smiled as he looked to a photo of him playing in the yard with his young son. He was so proud of the man Jeremy had become. The sickness in him was also starting to go away, they couldn't be happier about that.

He opened the microwave and pulled the small plate from it, then carried it over to the table and sat down. He took a bite and opened up his newspaper. He smiled and settled into his chair. The last thing he read was a Peanuts comic strip, then a loud explosion hit him from behind and blood spilt over the paper, the coffee, and the drink.

"Sorry if I kept you guys waiting," Hector said as he strolled into the alley. The group all sighed with relief and stepped forward, ignoring the smirk on his face. He looked at Jonah and Valerie, then frowned, he could see they really knew nothing that was going on. However they were involved, they couldn't easily leave.

"It took you long enough," Jeremy said as he stepped forward and shook Hector's hand, smiling happily. He was happy to hear that Sam was now in custody. Jonah and Valerie evidently didn't realize that Sam had been kidnapped, they thought she was just chained up somewhere as part of the prank.

"So, I guess the prank's ready to go?" Valerie asked cautiously. Hector nodded and slowly pulled out a photograph. He didn't want Valerie or Jonah to see the picture, since he suspected them to be of weak heart. He hated to see yet another murder, and if they left, they'd have to die.

The thugs entered Valerie's house, the doors and windows had been locked. As they walked through the house, they realized it was completely empty. The family was out. Evidently Valerie's father had been called to work early. Vanessa was taking Viola to the college she'd be starting up, she wanted her mom to be proud of her. Veronica was at school, working late on a project. Victoria was watching Vixen at her dance class, they'd been going in late as well.

Jonah's house was very much the same way. Michael and Olivia were gone. Nobody knew where they were either. In truth, Olivia was at school, rehearsing for a school play. Michael didn't have to, but he decided since Jonah was out and about, he was going to watch Olivia rehearse. Her play was coming up in a few weeks. The lead thug cursed and dialed Victor's number. "Neither the Williams family or the Brown family are home!"

"That's fine," Victor said quietly. He had thought about it, but keeping the families alive might be better. If the group knew their fate hung in the balance, they would be forced to cooperate. "Leave them alive, once those two know their families' lives hang in the balance, they'll have no choice but to cooperate with us." The thugs agreed to that and left the homes perfectly intact, nobody would know anyone broke in. However, they did take photographs just as they had done with the ones they'd already been to.

"This is a picture of Sam," Hector said as he handed Jeremy the photo. He made sure Jonah and Valerie didn't see it. Jeremy grinned and laughed maliciously at the photo. Sam's eyes seemed so emotionless, she already seemed broken. Gibby groaned in disgust, he hadn't expected so much pain to go to Sam. He did want to hurt her somehow, to make her pay. So it wasn't so bad. He just didn't like the picture. Nevel didn't really react to it.

"My god Hector, what did you do to her?" Jeremy asked with a demonic laugh. Valerie and Jonah looked at each other, filled with concern. Now they really didn't trust them. They weren't going to run until they saw Sam, though. They needed to know what was really going on.

"You guys will see her soon." Hector took the picture just as his phone started to ring. He quickly answered and walked a few feet away. "What's going on Victor?" The group watched in silence as Hector talked to the man, he nodded and hung up, smiling lightly. Just as he hung up, one of Victor's thugs found him, he'd been sent to find him.

"As Victor said, he doesn't want you to tell Jonah or Valerie anything until the time is ripe," the man whispered quietly. "The other three, since they know more about what's going on already…let them know who is boss." Hector nodded as he took the photos from the man. He whistled as he saw the bodies in the photo, this was amazing work.

"All right, thank you." Hector turned around as the man walked off. He looked at the group and smiled. "Jeremy, Gibby, Nevel, would you come with me please? Jonah, Valerie, I want you two to stay right there." Jonah and Valerie shrugged as the other three followed Hector around the corner and out of earshot.

"What's up?" Jeremy asked quietly.

"As you know, you cannot back out of this." Jeremy breathed out and shrugged, he already figured that. "However, I will not let you control me, it is _I_ that will give the orders."

"Well this was our idea."

"I am the criminal. You should have thought about it before you decided to mingle with _me_." Jeremy raised his eyebrow as Gibby and Nevel glanced worriedly at each other. "To give you an idea of just how _bad_ I can be if you piss me off and go against me…" He lifted the pictures up and handed Gibby the photos of his mother and brother. Gibby's eyes popped out and he began to feel sick.

"Mom? Guppy!" Gibby exclaimed painfully. His eyes dampened and he took a fearful step back.

"Know that if you screw with me, if you try to overtake me, this can happen to you as well."

"You _killed_ them!" Nevel peered over Gibby's shoulder and winced. He gagged and looked away, there was too much blood in the photos. He couldn't even tell they were Gibby's mom and brother. "You fucking killed them!"

"Nevel…"

"What?" Nevel asked as he raised his eyebrow and looked over. Gibby's hands tightened on his photos as Hector handed Nevel the pictures of his mother's body. Nevel gasped when he saw the photo. "No…Mom…"

"Exactly…" Nevel dropped the photo and quickly ran to a patch of grass and bent over, vomiting from the sight. "Remember who is in control here. Since I deemed you three as threats…I had to do this as punishment…" Jeremy raised his eyebrow and tilted his head.

"What the hell are you going on about?" Jeremy asked quietly.

"Oh and this is special for you Jeremy." Hector handed Jeremy the photo of his father. Jeremy gasped and his hands started to shake violently.

"N-N-No…my dad…" He slowly fell to his knees, staring at the picture of his father and turning green. His father was dead. "He was all I had! No. No. NO!" His cry rang out and he bent over, slamming his fists onto the ground. No, he had to stay strong, he had to get past this. He brought this upon himself.

"Now you know what you're getting involved in. Leave, and I will ensure your deaths and the deaths of any other relatives you may have. _I_ am in control here, you three will do as I say from now on. Do you understand me?"

Gibby, Nevel, and Jeremy all glared angrily at Hector, their chests heaving with every pant. They had no choice, there was too much at stake now. Jeremy bowed his head and stared at the photo which now lay on the ground. His eyes narrowed and his teeth clenched as tears dripped down. No, he would control Hector one way or another. It didn't matter. This was too much. "Dad…"

"Fine, we're under your command," Gibby said quietly. He knew his grandfather was still alive somewhere, along with other relatives of his. There was too much at stake now. "Just don't harm anymore of my family!"

"Same here," Nevel growled. He didn't want to look at the picture again, he was already too sick. "You can have all the control you want, I don't care. Just…I have other family, I don't want anything to happen to them." Hector smiled proudly and nodded his head, he could respect their requests.

"It is done." Jeremy slowly rose and placed his hand on his gut. All this just to torture the living hell out of Sam? It seemed a grand price to pay. He took a staggering step forward and growled spitefully at Hector. There really was nothing he could do. This was clear evidence that Hector already had several people working under him. If they betrayed him, they would easily be killed, just as swiftly as their families had been.

"Fine," Jeremy said while clenching his fists. He would have to overcome this somehow. What did it matter, right? He was going to be leaving his father anyway.

"Now here's what's going to happen. I'm getting several mansions around the country erected, we will never remain in one place for long. Victor wants me out of his basement soon, so we're going to a mansion pretty far. He's made a way, nobody's going to trace us."

"Hector, you killed our families like that. Now Sam…what did you do to her?" Hector smirked as Gibby and Nevel looked over at him. They could see how hurt he was, he was closer to his father than they ever were with their own parents. "That dead expression on her face, those wounds…what did you do?"

"That's for me to know, and only me. Maybe you'll find out one day." Jeremy's face darkened as Gibby started to pale and Nevel turned back to his pile of vomit. He was going to be sick again. What have they done?

* * *

Maybe for the first chapter I should have put in a short one paragraph of Sam and Freddie kissing. That sure would have gotten attention, lol. For those of you loyal readers who have gotten this far, THANK YOU. You're the reason I keep updating this thing. Anyway, once I get to the part where the origional PATERNAL BONDS started, I'm basically rewriting it into this story. Which means, THIS IS PATERNAL BONDS REWRITTEN.


	6. iCarly Disbands

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 6 (iCarly Disbands)

The time had come to say goodbye, Sam was dreading this moment for far too long. She and Jeremy made their way through the halls of Bushwell. Jeremy was clenching her arm tightly, but she was too afraid to try and run anyway. "Please let me go Jeremy, I won't run," Sam begged nervously. Jeremy held his stern expression and narrowed his eyes. She could see he wasn't about to let her go. "Please Jeremy, I won't run. You're hurting me."

"Just shut up," Jeremy said under his breath. They stopped by Freddie's door and Sam looked at it mournfully. This was the last time she'd ever pass this place. She wanted to die, she just wanted to die. Why should she live after this? Why did they hate her? Jeremy and Sam entered to see Spencer asleep on the couch. The two walked up the stairs and Jeremy stayed at the top of them while Sam walked to the door. She couldn't take this. She stared in the door and tears ran down her cheeks, she hesitated while watching Freddie and Carly one last time. "Get a move on."

"Give me time…please…"

"Go." He growled threateningly and she quickly entered. Carly and Freddie looked at her with surprise, she was horribly beaten. Freddie started to move towards her, but she flinched and closed her eyes, looking away.

"Sam, what's the matter?" Freddie asked as he slowly set the camera down. He was very concerned for her. She hadn't been in school all day and for her to be late for iCarly, it was just unheard of. Something bad had to have happened to her. "Are you okay?"

"Freddie…" She slowly walked towards him and gripped his shirt tightly, sobbing as she buried her face into his chest. Carly looked at her friend with concern and started to walk over. Freddie was the only one Sam trusted not to hurt her now. After what her father had done to her, it was hard to trust anyone. "God I'm so sorry Freddie. I'm sorry."

"Sam?" Carly asked as she lifted her hand and started to touch Sam's shoulder. Sam lifted her head up and shrieked, jumping back immediately. Carly frowned and Freddie pressed his lips together. Sam spotted an envelope on the chair and saw it was from some director. Maybe Carly would have a good life. She wouldn't. Sam bowed her head and sobbed.

"I-I'm leaving. I can't stay here anymore."

"What do you mean? Where are you going to go?" They had iCarly to do, Sam couldn't go anywhere yet. Not only that, they wanted to find out why Sam looked like she was in so much pain.

"Yeah, sit down for a minute," Freddie suggested quietly. Sam quickly shook her head. She didn't have a lot of time as it was, she needed to say goodbye to them quickly. After this, iCarly might be over. She felt so guilty for it. She wished desperately that things could be different.

"I can't, and I can't tell you where I'm going to be." They might be killed if they ever found out. Carly and Freddie glanced at each other with great concern, what the hell could be happening? "I love you both very much. I don't want to leave, I don't, but I don't have a choice either. All I can say is goodbye…forever…"

"What are you talking about!" Sam winced at the raised voice and Freddie quickly felt bad for that. "I'm sorry, it's just…Carly and I don't know what's going on. Why can't you tell us? Why are you crying? Why are you hurt? And forever…that's a long time, you know." They had plans together, and now Sam was going to disappear? It just didn't seem right. "Sam, reconsider…"

"Sam, we got a letter from a famous director," Carly said with a sad smile. "You and I have the opportunity to go to Hollywood!"

"I hope you take that opportunity, Carly," Sam said quietly. The tears never seemed to stop. Carly frowned as Sam quickly turned around. She needed to go now, or she'd never leave. "It's best that you forget about me. Forget about me and never look back…I'm sorry. Freddie, I want to kiss you, but…" Her fists clenched up and she shook her head. "Have good lives."

"Sam?" Freddie asked confused. Sam stood there a moment, crying silent tears. She needed to be strong, somehow she had to become stronger. She quickly left the room, leaving Carly and Freddie in shock. It was too painful for her, she just couldn't deal with this anymore. She met Jeremy at the tops of the stairs and grabbed his shirt.

"Please just kill me, Jeremy. Please…_Please_…" She fell to her knees and started sobbing. Jeremy rolled his eyes and grabbed her hair, jerking her upwards.

"Come on, let's go," Jeremy said spitefully. Sam continued to sob as she and Jeremy went into the elevator. They rode it down and met up with Hector outside. "You're never going to see Bushwell Plaza again, you're never going to see Ridgeway again, so you may as well kiss everything goodbye."

"I hate you!"

"Yeah, I know you do, but I don't give a damn. Get in the car." Sam sobbed as they pushed her into the backseat. Hector got in the driver's side and Jeremy entered the front passenger. "All right then, Hector. Gun it."

"I can't believe you're with him, Jeremy!"

"Yeah, well we're going to teach you a valuable lesson that you won't forget. You've been treating people like shit, it's about time you learn what happens when you treat others like the scum of the earth." Sam frowned and looked down, she had been told it was too late for any apologies.

"I have to go console your mother," Hector said with a frown. He was going to drop Jeremy and Sam off at the house. Victor wanted him in one of his designated mansions within the week. He was getting a million to start off with.

"You're slime!" Sam shouted at Hector. She hated him, she hated everything about him. She was afraid of him though, she wanted him to leave her alone. "I want my mom."

"Yeah well you're not getting her, so shut up!" Sam whimpered as Hector pulled in front of Victor's house. Sam gasped and shook her head as Jeremy got out and started pulling her from the car.

"No! I'm not going back in there! I can't go back in there!"

"Shut up and get in there!" Sam winced and fell to her knees. Jeremy jerked her up and started pulling her inside the house. Hector sighed and shook his head as he drove to Amy's house. When he arrived, he found her sitting on the couch amid a bunch of used tissues. She looked up at him, her cheeks tearstained and her eyes reddened. Hector frowned and sat next to her, placing his arm around her shoulders. They had really been trying to find Sam. "I'm sorry Amy, there's still nothing."

"You said you were watching her!"

"I was. It's like I said, she went to the bathroom and I never saw her after that. I even had one of the female employees go in to find her."

"And they didn't find anything at all?"

"No, I'm so sorry." Amy cried and buried her head in his chest. He sighed sadly and rubbed her back. She knew she felt something was wrong, how could she let Sam go? "We're searching everywhere." He knew Victor had planned on paying the police chief off somehow. That would keep the fuzz off his trail. Amy lifted her head up and looked at a photo of Sam. God she missed the girl already.

"Do you really have to leave in less than a week?" She wanted him to stay and help her look for her daughter. Hector frowned and slowly nodded his head. He placed his hands on her shoulder and looked directly into her eyes.

"They're going to find her Amy, don't you worry. They will find her."

"I want my Sammie back so badly, it hurts."

"I know it does, I know." Hector hugged her close and closed his eyes tightly. Amy sniffed and looked up at him.

"Maybe whoever has her…is treating her nicely." Hector smiled sadly and nodded, giving Amy the hope that her daughter wasn't being cruelly treated. He didn't feel any guilt whatsoever, but he would give Amy as much sympathy as he needed.

"You know I'm here for you. I'm doing the best I can until I have to move. You know, boss man's relocating me."

"I know." She blew her nose and tossed her tissue into a nearby trashcan. Hector sighed and started placing the other tissues in the trash as well, Amy was making a mess. "Hector. Thank you."

"Don't worry about it, Amy."

"I'm going to find her. I'm going to find my baby girl." Hector raised his eyebrow as Amy wiped her eyes. "Whatever it takes, I'm not going to rest until I've found her."

"That's the spirit, Amy!" What Hector didn't know was that Jonah had followed him from Bushwell to Victor's house and here. He saw what they were doing to Sam, and he didn't like it. Jonah glared at Hector through an open window.

_"Some 'prank',' _Jonah thought angrily as he turned away and narrowed his eyes, he'd been tricked and he hated it.. He had to help Sam, he needed to get her out. He wasn't going to sit here and watch as they tortured her. Hell no. "Okay Sam, I'm coming for you. I'm getting you out of there." He quickly walked towards his own car, running his plan through his mind.

* * *

And that's that chapter. Hector's over there consoling Amy, and Jonah's planning on getting Sam out. Let's see what happens.


	7. The Traitor

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

Chapter 7 (Traitor)

* * *

Jonah entered Victor's home later the next night, surely now everyone would be asleep. He had to wait for today because a lot had happened the day before. Victor would be asleep with his wife while Gibby, Nevel, and Jeremy napped in the guest bedrooms. As he trailed through the living room, he stopped and realized he was wrong. Jeremy was asleep on the couch. That meant Nevel, Gibby, Hector and Valerie were probably in the guest bedrooms. He narrowed his eyes and looked at the basement door and narrowed his eyes. First priority was Sam. He'd have to get Valerie after she was safe.

"You're home late," Jeremy muttered from the couch. Jonah froze and looked over to see Jeremy's eyes open. The boy was still awake, for crying out loud. Thankfully the basement door was _behind_ the couch. "Where have you been?"

"I had to take care of my baby sis."

"You know Hector doesn't want us doing anything more with our families right now, right?" Jonah shrugged and folded his arms across his chest. He didn't really give a damn what the bastard said, he was nothing. "I think your girlfriend's been wanting to see you."

"Okay…" Jonah nodded and took the opportunity to go see what Valerie wanted. He closed the door behind him and found her sitting on her bed, clutching her gown. "Hey Valerie, are you okay?"

"Jonah I'm scared. I know what they're doing to Sam."

"I know, I'm trying to get her out…" Valerie gasped and looked up at him with wide eyes. He couldn't do that, they might kill him if they caught him. She quickly got up and moved over to him, taking his hands. He could see the fear in her eyes, he understood why she was afraid. He didn't want to tell her what happened to Jeremy, Nevel, and Gibby's families. They found out earlier today at the school, Valerie hadn't attended classes that day. He didn't want her to know the violence that was taking place all around them. "I'm going to be okay Valerie."

"We need to wait and get Sam out when they're not expecting betrayal, Jonah! You know they don't trust us." Jonah slowly nodded and gave Valerie a hug. He knew that if he failed to get Sam out, then he would most likely end up dead. If that happened, then Valerie would be on her own, so he needed to do everything in his power to make it out safely, and then come back for her. "Jonah, what if I lose you?"

"You will _never_ lose me. I will always be there for you." Jonah reached into his pocket and pulled out a watch. He smiled as Valerie raised her eyebrow curiously. She wanted to know what the use of the watch was. "This is for you. It's a project my dad's been working on." Valerie watched quietly as Jonah wrapped the watch firmly around her wrist. "If ever we can't use our cell phones, then you can talk to me through this. I know it'll be hard to do, since Hector's plans are to keep you guys under strict surveillance…I don't expect that these watches will be necessary, though."

"Why?"

"Because I intend on coming after you once Sam's safe." Valerie nodded and smiled as Jonah quickly kissed her lips. "I'll be back Valerie. In order to talk to me, press the red button on your watch."

"Okay. I love you Jonah."

"I love you." Jonah silently left her room and started heading towards the basement, making sure everyone was asleep first. It was probably too troublesome for him to take Sam out the way of the basement and front door, they'd have to leave through one of the windows.

He carefully entered the basement and quietly shut the door, he was sure nobody heard him. He made his way to Sam, who looked like she had finally fallen to sleep. "Sam." He whispered her name a few times before she awoke and looked at him. Her eyes quivered, she wasn't sure if he was going to hurt her or if he was going to help her.

"Please don't hurt me," She whimpered fearfully. Jonah nodded and started to work to release her hands.

"I'm going to get you out of here. I'm saving you." Her eyes filled with hope as Jonah freed her wrists. He looked to the basement window and pointed at it. "We're going through there."

"Okay."

"Once I free you, I need to free Valerie and then get our families somewhere safe. I just found out that Hector and Victor killed the families of Jeremy, Nevel and Gibby."

"Oh my god…" That was horrible! How could anybody do something like that? Jonah led her to the basement window and climbed on top of the crates. He grunted as he pushed the window out.

"You first, Sam." Sam nodded and climbed out of the window, Jonah soon followed behind. Finally feeling the air of freedom on her skin, she smiled and quickly hugged Jonah.

"Thank you Jonah!"

"We're not out of the mist yet. We need to keep running." Sam nodded and the two started running down the street. He wasn't entirely sure where they were going to go, but his own home was the closest place. It wasn't long until a black car pulled up in front of him. Jonah froze and his eyes widened. "Shit, it's Jeremy! Run Sam!"

"No!" Sam took off running as Jeremy, Gibby and Nevel smoothly stepped out of the car. They glared at Jonah, who merely stood there cussing to himself.

"Are we just going to let her run?" Nevel asked quietly. Jeremy shrugged and leaned against the car. He knew they'd catch up with her. Jonah growled and narrowed his eyes, clenching his fists tightly.

"How could you have known…How the hell did you know!"

"Well if you had been involved with all of us, you would know we had an alarm system hooked up to those cuffs," Jeremy said while shrugging his arms and grinning darkly. Jonah's eyes widened as Nevel and Gibby pulled a bat and a golf club from the trunk of the car. Jeremy had a pistol in his pocket. Jonah took a slight step back and growled angrily, how could something like this happen? He made it perfect. Damn them. Damn them for those alarms. "Now if you had been more trustworthy, we wouldn't have to worry about this."

"Sorry it's come to this man," Gibby said while clenching the bat. Nevel swung the golf club on the ground and sighed. Jonah held his glare on Jeremy and frowned.

"Put those weapons away and fight me like a real man," Jonah said with a deadly glare. He needed to stall them long enough to let Sam get away. It seemed they weren't planning on letting that happen, though.

Jeremy stared at Jonah for a minute before uttering the very words Jonah didn't want to hear. "Kill him." With that Gibby and Nevel advanced upon him, hitting him in the front and in the back with their objects. Jonah shouted in pain as he felt his ribs starting to crack.

"Fuck you bastards." Jonah quickly grabbed the bat Gibby was using and pulled it away, trying to ignore the fact that Nevel was wailing on him with the golf club. He kicked Gibby back and swung the bat on Nevel, smashing into his shoulder. Nevel shouted in pain and gripped his left shoulder, it would take some time for that to heal. "I'm going to break your legs."

"Give me back that bat!" Gibby quickly punched Jonah in the jaw and threw him to the ground. Jonah cussed as Nevel started hitting him in the abdomen with the club. One hand and the little punk still knew how to hit. He shouted out as Gibby straddled him and started slamming his fist into his face.

"You know what we're going to do after this?" Jeremy asked while slowly walking up to Jonah. Jonah grunted as he attempted to push Gibby off him. "We're going to find your father, and your sister, and we're going to kill them. We're going to murder them, stripping them limb by limb." Jonah's eyes widened as Gibby punched him several times in the chest and Nevel held his club on his shoulder, smirking triumphantly. "First we'll handle Olivia. How old is your little sister, by the way?"

"I think she's twelve, Jeremy." Gibby chuckled as Jeremy smirked dangerously, narrowing his eyes.

"You want to know how old that girl was that Hector went to jail for?" Jonah froze, he was trying to figure out where Jeremy was going with this. "She was twelve. It turns out, he really enjoys those twelve year olds. We may let your father watch Hector do whatever he likes, and then we're going to kill him slowly and painfully." Jeremy knew they wouldn't actually go to such extremes, but the threat was good enough to destroy Jonah. Or so, that was what he thought. "Then, we're going to take your girlfriend…"

"No!" Jonah shouted angrily. Gibby shouted as Jonah quickly pushed him off. "Get. OFF!"

"Oh well shit." Jonah grabbed the bat and quickly swung it at Gibby, hitting him several times. Gibby shouted and fell to his hands and knees, his body was in extreme pain.

"Leave Dad and Olivia alone! Leave Valerie alone!" Jonah quickly thrust the bat forward, slamming it into Nevel's chest, hoping to at least have shattered a few ribs. Nevel was winded. Jeremy took a slight step back as Jonah turned his fierce glare onto Jeremy. "I'll kill you!"

"I don't think so." Jeremy quickly pulled out his gun as Jonah raised the bat above his head. He was going to smash Jeremy's head in. Jonah grunted as Jeremy fired a shot into his abdomen. Blood started trickling from his mouth as Jeremy swiftly kicked him to the ground.

"One day," Jonah muttered quietly.

"What was that?" Jeremy placed his hand to his ear and moved towards Jonah, mocking him.

"One day I'm going to kill you…For everything you've done, I will kill you." Jeremy laughed and quickly fired a shot into his back, intentionally missing any vital nerves or organs. He wanted Jonah to die slowly and painfully.

"That'll be the day. Come on guys." He helped Gibby and Nevel to their feet and led them to the car, they never thought Jonah would cause them that much trouble. Jonah grunted and watched the blood flow as the boys went to catch Sam. He had failed her, he _failed_ to protect anyone. The guys found Sam only moments later, running towards her mother's house. Had she gone to Jonah's home, they would not have found her.

"Jonah?" Valerie's voice came from the radio on his watch. Her voice was panicked, she knew the boys woke up and discovered Sam was missing. She wanted to know that he was okay. "Jonah? Jonah! Talk to me, please, answer me Jonah!" Sobs were heard when no response came, she was suspecting the worst if they found him. They were going to kill his family now. "J-Jonah…"

* * *

Big intense action bit that only one or two people will ever see. Hope you enjoyed it.


	8. Safe!

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 8 (Safe!)

An hour later, Jonah had managed to make it to his own home. He was bloody, he was beaten, but he wasn't out yet. He'd regained consciousness and prayed that his father and sister were safe. He knew his father would bandage up his wounds. It would be too late tomorrow to do a thing, Hector was moving to a new mansion then. He needed to think of something. He started banging on the door, he needed to rouse them somehow, but the door really wasn't going to do anything.

He slowly made his way to his father's bedroom window and looked inside, his father was sleeping, which was good. Jeremy and the others hadn't gone after them yet. He started banging on the window, trying to wake his father. "Dad! Dad wake up now! Please!" He was going to lose consciousness again, he could feel it. He panted as he beat on the window again, using up all his energy just to wake his father. It worked, Michael rose from the bed and stared over at the window. When he realized it was Jonah, he quickly ran to the window and opened it.

"Oh my god, Jonah what the hell happened!" Michael shouted as he quickly pulled his son inside. Jonah made his way to the bed and collapsed on it.

"Dad, you and Olivia need to get out of this house. You need to be safe. There's people who want to kill you and her…They want to kill us." Michael frowned as he quickly started dialing the hospital. He believed his son, especially if this happened. If this was the truth, then he needed to take his children and run. When he hung up, he ran over to Jonah and started investigating the wounds. "Trust me, you can't wait. You have to leave…we have to leave…"

"Let me bandage your wounds first, Son." Michael worked quickly to try and stop the bleeding and to bandage everything up. Jonah moaned painfully as everything started to become dark. He felt horrible for getting involved with those freaks. This was his payment. He chuckled and thought of Freddie. This beating was worse than Freddie had given him. There was no way Freddie would ever talk to him, though. He was going to save his father and his sister, no matter what. He wouldn't let anything happen to them. "Jonah, can you hear me? Are you doing okay?"

"I'm okay dad. Listen, pack everything tonight." Michael slowly nodded his head, tears coming to his eyes. "Be out of here by tomorrow morning. Let me stay at the hospital, but make them have me on strict surveillance."

"Where do you want us to go?"

"Granddad Bryant would be best." George Bryant was the grandfather of his late mother, Denise. "Get Grandpa too, take him to Granddad Bryant." George was born in 1909, so he was secluded in his own comfort zone in the Cascade Mountains somewhere where no one bothered him. The very small town of Index, Washington. Michael frowned and closed his eyes. That was a bit far away to go.

"Son, to take you and Olivia away from school so far away…"

"You don't understand, dad. We're all in danger, our entire family. You know what happened to Gibby's family? Or Jeremy's, or even Nevel…" Michael frowned and nodded, he had seen that in the paper. "The same people that did that to them are going to do that to us. Granddad Bryant is the only one they can't find…You don't have longer than tomorrow morning."

"What about you?"

"I'll be fine…just…do this…" Michael nodded as the tears came to his eyes as Jonah lost consciousness. He looked over and saw Olivia in the doorway, she was very frightened by what she saw.

"Daddy, what's going on?" Olivia asked as she rushed over to Jonah and took his hand.

"It's okay, he's fine dear," Michael said quietly. The paramedics arrived and rushed in for Jonah, they needed to work fast to save his life. Michael closed his eyes and slowly stood up as he talked to the lead paramedic. "I don't know what happened, but please…take him to the hospital nearest Index." That was the small town that his wife's grandfather lived in. The paramedic nodded as they took Jonah to the ambulance. Olivia grabbed her father's shirt and looked up to him fearfully. He smiled sadly and placed his hand on her hand. "How would you like to visit Granddad Bryant?"

"Really?"

"Yes, we're going to be staying with him for a while…So let's start packing our things."

"What about Jonah?"

"He's going to be there too, once he's out of the hospital." His voice was shaky and it was clear he was trying to mask the fear he had. After seeing his son like that and hearing what he had to say, there was no telling what would happen to them. He had to call up Granddad Bryant, even though it meant waking the man.

The next day found Sam shouting from her chains as Jeremy peeled an apple in front of her. Jeremy smirked and grabbed a dirty sock from the laundry. "Hey Sam, remember this? Put a sock in it." Sam gasped as he tied the sock around her head, covering her mouth. She moaned and tears dripped onto the sock. Valerie ran into the basement and gasped when she saw Sam and Jeremy. Jeremy looked over at Valerie and sighed. "I'm sorry, your boyfriend tried to play hero last night. He really banged Gibby and Nevel up something fierce."

"What have you done to my Jonah?" Valerie asked with tears streaming her cheeks. Jeremy slowly rose and walked over to her, grabbing her throat and slamming her against the wall. She gasped and her eyes widened fearfully as he smirked dangerously into her eyes.

"I know you would _love_ to betray us, just as he did. I have news for you, we're going to the same thing to your family that we are going to now do to his, only if you betray us." Valerie gasped as Jeremy slowly licked his lips. Sam looked closed her eyes and looked away, she couldn't see them very well but she could hear them. She felt badly for Valerie, having lost Jonah the way she had.

"Y-You killed him, didn't you?"

"Well we left him to die. Now, you're going to stay with us, do you understand me?" She looked away and he throttled her a bit, causing her to shout out. "I said do you _understand?_"

"You wouldn't…"

"You don't think we'd send our people to kill your family?" He glared into her eyes, hate and venom clearly present in his eyes. "I lost my father, Gibby and Nevel lost their families, so you think we _like_ seeing _you_ with your family still alive? No, we'll kill them Valerie. We'll kill them if you _ever _dream of betraying us."

"No! You can't! Vanessa's just staring college and Vixen's becoming a great dancer! Who will take care of mom? You can't hurt them…"

"Then don't betray us."

"…I won't. I'll do anything to keep them alive. Please don't hurt them."

"Remember that _we_ control you, we control your fate and the fate of your family." She sobbed as Jeremy threw her to the ground. "You are nothing." Valerie looked up as Jeremy reached for his belt, her eyes widened and she shrieked.

"What are you doing?" Sam's eyes shot open and she started shouting out for help, no words coming. Valerie started to crawl away, but Jeremy wrapped the belt around her neck and pulled her back. "No!" Just then, the basement door opened and Gibby stepped in. He couldn't see anything, though.

"Jeremy, are you down here?" Gibby asked. Jeremy growled and released Valerie, she shouted out and fell to the ground, sobbing. Gibby raised his eyebrow as Sam started shouting for Gibby through her sock.

"Yeah what do you want Gibby?" Jeremy asked as he positioned his belt back on his pants.

"Hector wants you, he says it's time for us to lead the thugs over to Jonah's house. He wants to talk to you before then, though."

"Fine…" Jeremy looked at Valerie and narrowed his eyes. She screamed out and sobbed. She wouldn't leave them, not now. She was too afraid of what they might do to her or her family. She saw their evil. Jeremy walked up the stairs and out of the basement. Gibby narrowed his eyes and frowned into the darkness.

"Valerie? Are you down here too?" All he could hear was her silent sobs. He walked down the steps and found her curled up into a ball. "Oh my god, what happened?" He hurried over to Valerie and felt her shaking body. She screamed and looked up at him, calming down when she saw he wasn't a threat. Gibby could see a red mark on her throat. "What did Jeremy do to you?"

"He tried to…I don't know what he was going to do if you hadn't shown up." Gibby frowned and gave Valerie a small, comforting hug. Which to her, was comforting no matter what side he was on.

"I'm sorry Valerie. I won't let him hurt you again, okay?" He smiled softly and helped her to her feet. "You're one of us, you know? He's just being a jackass, that's all."

"You killed my Jonah." Gibby frowned and closed his eyes. They really had no choice in the matter. As bad as it was, they couldn't risk Jonah telling anybody what was going on.

"I'm sorry Valerie. If it makes you feel any better at all, he roughed both me and Nevel up pretty damn badly." She smiled as Gibby walked her out of the basement. She didn't want to be around Jeremy right now, so she felt good that Gibby was going to try and keep him away from her. Just before they went upstairs, she took the sock off of Sam and started to thank her for trying to call out for help.

Jeremy, Gibby, and Nevel led the group of thugs to Jonah's home. They noticed that Jonah's body wasn't where it had been before. They weren't sure if he survived or if he died and was found already. They really didn't have any time to worry about that, since they were sure he was dead.

When they made it to where Michael and Olivia were, they were ready to kill the two. They were shocked when they found no cars in the garage. When they busted into the house, they found it _completely_ empty. There was some furniture still around, but as for everything else, the house had been abandoned. Jeremy growled furiously as the men thoroughly investigated the house. They literally tore it apart from top to bottom.

"Don't tell me they _left_,"Jeremy slammed his fist against a wall and stared at the refrigerator. He opened it and found it entirely devoid of all food. Frowning, he shut the door and found a note on the freezer. Growling, he tore it off and shouted to everybody in the room. "Let's get moving, they're note here! Damn bastards took off like a fucking flock of birds migrating away!"

"Yeah, even the little girl's mattress has lost its covers and the clothes are out of the bedroom closets," one person said with a tired sigh. Jeremy growled and started burning the note with a match.

_"You will never find us, this family is protected."_ Jonah's family is safe, he managed to get them out of there in time. Stick around for the next chapter. Thank's to the one reviewing this, you're keeping this story alive, believe me.


	9. Police Corruption

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 9 (Police Corruption)

Amy and Della Marissa Benson drove downtown in a small sedan, it had been three weeks since Sam's kidnapping. Nobody found her, and the police were still searching. There had been rumors that some of the police were being paid off by someone, but nobody had proof. Della was part of a cyber-police unit and was interested in recruiting Amy into the field of criminal justice. Amy actually was interested in going in, to investigate her daughter's disappearance. However, she had a feeling that someone was after her.

"You say you're not safe?" Della asked curiously. She and Spencer had talked about Sam's abduction. He said he had a feeling it might be connected to the disappearances of Gibby, Jeremy, Nevel, and Valerie. He actually had been going to law school for the past year, contrary to what his dad thought. He had actually finished and was a full blown lawyer now. Sure he was new, but he knew how to process documents at least. Amy slowly nodded her head and remembered what had happened to Jonah and how he and his family had left town.

"Everything just seems too coincidental." Amy frowned as Della slowly nodded her head. Nobody heard from Hector or knew where he was, he moved without saying a word. "I almost wonder if Jeremy and the others are involved in it too."

"Why?"

"They never liked my daughter. I don't know if Valerie would be involved or not, but with those boys gone at the same time…I'm a bit worried." Della looked in her rearview mirror and frowned, there was a car behind them that had been following them for quite some time. This was actually foreseen by the two women, they knew what it meant. "I think it's Hector though, something just…" Amy closed her eyes and tears left her eyes. The way he acted when Sam disappeared, though, that was what made it difficult. She didn't know if it was him or not, she didn't want to think he could have taken their daughter. "He seemed so kind."

"They often do, Amy. They often do."

"He's untouchable though, if it really is him. I mean there's no way to trace him now." This was true. Ever since he started his career, he was practically non-existent. The trail was going to wind up dead at this rate.

"I'm going to call Spencer, I have an idea, if you think it could be Hector and he's out for you." Della called Spencer up and looked in her rearview mirror once more. She took a sharp left and the person tailing them did the same. He was definitely following them.

"Can you draft up a death certificate?" Amy raised her eyebrow as Della stepped on the gas just a bit. "We may be faking a death in order to get her in a witness protection deal." Amy rolled her eyes as the conversation went on for a bit. "So you can do that? Thank you very much!"

"So what's the plan, Dell?"

"We'll see." Della pulled into a nearby alleyway, knowing Spencer was just around the corner. She went inside as Amy gave a small sigh, somehow she felt this was going to be incredibly painful. She exited the car in time to see the man pull up, he had no plates and was wearing a ski mask.

"Typical, you don't want to be identified, huh?" The man sneered as he pointed his gun towards her.

"Boss man says you have to die," the man said as he cocked his gun. Amy sighed and raised her hands, she was trusting Della with this. Thank god she was wearing a vest underneath.

"You're going to shoot a woman who just lost everything? How low can you go?"

"I've gone a lot lower than this." Amy raised her eyebrows and chuckled. How nice of him to reveal that much. She knew people would be all over this in an instant. That is, unless the police were really the corrupt bastards they were rumored to be.

"Tell me, kind sir…" A sarcastic sneer was in her voice, she knew this man must be connected to someone who had her child. "Are the disappearances of Gibby, Nevel, Jeremy, and Valerie connected? Are the deaths of those families all connected? Do they have something to do with my daughter's disappearance?" The man laughed and a smirk formed at his lips. She narrowed her eyes and slowly closed her hands.

"Yes."

"Well then will you tell me this…Does my ex, Hector Puckett have anything to do with my daughter's disappearance?" The man frowned and held the gun on her for a minute, contemplating his answer.

"No." Amy was now disheartened, was this man lying or telling the truth? Had Hector truly had nothing to do with Sam's disappearance? If so, then all respect to him for truly turning his life around. But if he did, if he really did, then she was going to find him and she would kill him.

"Is she alive?"

"Yes. They plan to keep her alive." Her eyes widened. Was he telling that just to make her feel better, or was that the truth? She could never tell with these criminals. "Now, enough chitchat. Goodbye Ms. Puckett." Amy closed her eyes and felt her body jerk with the gunshot. She fell back against the pavement as the man leapt into his car and sped away. It was not long before Della came rushing to her aid. She slowly opened her eyes and moaned lightly.

"Good job, you now get to join my all new, secret team."

"What team is that?"

"I like to call them the 'ghosts' of the police force." Amy raised her eyebrow as Della slowly helped her up. The Ghost Task Force was a newly formed squad that consisted for the sole purpose of combining officers and people who faked their deaths in order to work behind the scenes. They were supposed to be a highly skilled task force, the "Big Guns" of the police system. Nobody was to know about them, and in order to further keep secret the organization, they had to fake their deaths. Only a small few, special people were chosen for this. "You have a strong will, and I can see you handling criminals just fine."

"Great…can we go now? I'm kind of in pain. Are we anywhere near Spencer?"

"Yes, get in the car but keep your head down in case that person is still lurking about."

"Yes ma'am." Amy chuckled nervously as they drove off. A good thing about being behind the scenes meant they could investigate whatever they wanted, such as the disappearance of her daughter. They were the ones that mainly solved cold cases.

Meanwhile, Victor paid a little visit to the current chief of police. He smiled as the man stood up and shook his hand, recognizing him. "Victor Oswin, how are things at your publishing company?"

"So far things are running very smoothly. You know, I'm funding that new park they're putting in."

"Yes, I heard about that." The Chief sat down at his desk and smiled as Victor took a seat in the leather chair across the desk. "It's difficult to catch some things when you're as busy as we are."

"Oh? Is that so?"

"Yes, we're all abuzz over the incidents that have happened in the last few weeks. A girl is abducted, several people are murdered and their children abducted as well. We're not sure if there is a connection, we don't see any." Victor rubbed his chin in thought and glanced at the newspaper. The headliner was about Sam. "We just got a call in a few hours ago, the primary witness is dead. The girl's mother…"

"I see, it looks like you and the police need to take a little bit of a break from the case for a while." Victor silently moved his hand onto the desk and slipped a few hundred dollar bills forward. The Chief's eyes grew wide and he took the money, smiling ever so slightly as he began counting up to nearly ten thousand or more.

"Why yes, I think we could use a break from that case, old friend."

"So you'll have them stop investigating that girl's disappearance?"

"She won't be missed, she and her mother didn't have anyone…" Victor slowly nodded and stood up, he had other matters to attend to now. He'd just given Hector legal immunity, curtsey of the police chief of Seattle himself.

Hours later, Amy and Della were driving back to Bushwell when Della's police radio started beeping. Della flipped it on and the Chief's voice rang aloud. "Until further notice, the case of Sam Puckett's disappearance has gone cold. All units are hereby urged and forbidden from investigating this recent crime. Instead, top priority must be placed on other cases."

"Shit!" Della shouted as she turned off the radio. She couldn't believe it! She looked at Amy, who was visibly shaken. Nobody was going to look for her daughter. She couldn't believe it. "That's crap!"

"Is my daughter really nothing to them? Della?" Della frowned as she came to a stop in the Bushwell parking lot. She had to make a call, she needed to see if Henry knew anything about this. She grabbed her phone and noticed he beat her to it.

"Della, did you just hear the Chief?" Henry proclaimed.

"Yes, I'm pissed about it. You?"

"I don't understand, we can't look for her…what has this police force come to?"

"It's turned to hell ever since this guy's been in, I know that. He has no sense of justice. They could use a different man…" She didn't want to admit that she thought Henry would be much better. They divorced years ago when Freddie was only six. Henry had panicked when something happened to her and she fell into a coma for two weeks. He almost killed himself and sent Freddie to be adopted.

"They can't do this!"

"They just did. You want to try and lodge a complaint? The asshole might take away your badge. Anyway, I have some…consoling to do." Henry nodded in understanding as Della hung up the phone and turned to Amy, who was staring down in shock. "Amy, it's going to be okay. We're going to keep looking."

"We're forbidden to."

"Yeah for now…but you know, Henry's going to be police chief one day and then we can take the investigation into full blown top priority." Amy smiled slightly and looked at Della. She knew that Della still had feelings for Henry, after all, the divorce was a bit of jumping the gun.

"You have faith in him, don't you?" Della blushed and quickly shook her head. She could deny it as much as she wanted to, but Amy saw right through it.

"Either way, I'm still making this case top priority. I'm sure Henry is going to as well. We can work on it in secret. Plus, he just made it a 'cold' case." She smirked and narrowed her eyes, cold cases _were_ their specialty after all. "That instantly hands it over to the Ghosts."

"We do need to work on that name though." Amy was relieved that she had a good friend in Della, relieved that they would still look for Sam. They weren't going to give up just because some corrupt police chief told them not to continue.

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Got nothing to add, XD


	10. Pregnancies

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N: You know I have over 30 chapters of this already written...

Chapter 10 (Pregnancies)

Valerie walked to the basement of their mansion in Oregon, it had been a long trip. She knew Jonah was alive, since he had contacted her. This made her very happy. She hadn't told him what Jeremy was doing to her the day after his departure, she didn't want to worry him. Although, she knew he still had to be pretty damn worried. He also said that he was going to make damn sure no harm ever came to her family. He didn't know what he was going to do though, since the police didn't care anymore. There was no one he could go to, nothing he could do.

"Victor and Hector have people all over," Valerie repeated his words to herself and sighed. Basically if he went out in the open in Seattle, he risked being seen by one of Victor's men and being killed. Everybody was at a standstill now. Not only that, but Hector _did_ have them all on strict surveillance. Hell, she didn't even know where exactly the mansion was, all she knew was she'd been blindfolded for several hours.

Gibby made good with his promise, he talked to Hector who issued a 'no touching' rule for Sam and basically along with Gibby, Jeremy could not be next to Valerie. Valerie sighed as she entered the dark and musty basement, there was no light but a window. She frowned as Sam looked up from her binds. "Great, what do you want?" Sam asked as she looked away. She knew Valerie helped her sometimes, but the fact that she was with the guys made her extremely distrustful to her. "You know, I'm sick and nobody seems to care."

"That's not true." Sam had been very sick lately. She was throwing up, getting nauseous, and feeling very under the weather. Everyone basically had a bad feeling as to what this meant, so they could only hope it wasn't true. "Um…Sam?" Sam looked at Valerie with hopelessness in her eyes as Valerie clenched her pants with her hands. She felt really bad to have to break this news to Sam, but it had to be done. "T-The police…" Sam frowned, she knew what was coming. Valerie was going to say they stopped looking for her, wasn't she? She was going to say the police gave up, that she wasn't important enough. At least Sam didn't think she was. Valerie hated to have to lie, and she was sure no one was listening in. "Victor paid off the police so they would stop looking for you!"

"What?" Sam's eyes widened and the fear started to rise inside of her. At least it wasn't exactly what she thought it was, but it still hurt. It hurt that the police were this corrupted. "What about Freddie's dad? He's not a bad cop…"

"I know, but the Chief forbade the police from investigating. I don't know if Mr. Benson is going to continue or not, but it seems like he doesn't want to give up the chase." Sam smiled weakly and closed her eyes. Freddie and his father, they were two men she knew she could trust. "By the way, Hector informed me to get this…"

"What? Another torture device? Another plaything for the boys?" Valerie frowned and shook her head as she slowly lifted a pregnancy test from the bucket. Sam's eyes widened considerably and she looked away, ashamed. If she was pregnant, that would be the worst thing her father could ever have done to her. "It has to be done."

"Fine, but do I get to be decent or do I have to do it while chained on this wall?" Valerie frowned and looked down at the second bucket, filled with water.

"Hector told me that I was to make you drink all this water until you peed. When you peed, I had to hold this in place." Sam frowned as Valerie slowly stood up. She really didn't want to do that, but she also knew that defying Hector meant the possible death of her family, or even herself. "I'm not going to do that, but I don't know if they'll know or not."

"Look, I already have to go to the bathroom. Just drop my pants, put the thing under there, and be done with it." Valerie slowly nodded and opened the container. After preforming the pregnancy test, they had to wait. After a few minutes, the results were in. Valerie stared at the results and Sam waited anxiously to hear what they were. "Well? Well what does it say?"

"I'm sorry Sam…" Sam's face fell and she looked down at her belly. She was pregnant. With her father's child. Tears came to her eyes and her body jerked with each sob. Valerie closed her eyes and frowned as she slowly, carefully, poured the water down a nearby drain. She walked up to Sam and looked sadly at her. "Sam…"

"Please go. I want to be alone." Valerie nodded and left as Sam started bawling loudly. "Why? Why! Oh god Freddie…I'm so sorry…I didn't mean to. I didn't want this." She sobbed again, crying until her tears dried up. She was going to have a baby, whether she liked it or not. At least, there was no way they were going to kill it. She need to get used to the idea, she knew she had to, she had no choice but to give birth. Maybe, just maybe, when the time came, they'd take her to a hospital.

"What's the news?" Hector asked as Valerie walked into the main living room.

"She's pregnant." Hector frowned and Jeremy laughed, he couldn't believe it. Gibby and Nevel stared at each other with frowns, they weren't aware that Hector had touched Sam in any other way. While it didn't bother Nevel too much, it greatly bothered Gibby. He hated when people did such evil things.

"Is it Hector's?" Gibby asked quietly. It was a stupid question. After all, who else's could it be? It couldn't have been Freddie's, they had a 'no sex' rule issued when they started to date. Valerie slowly nodded and walked over to the couch. She felt like she was going to be sick, and it wasn't exactly just the thought of Hector having impregnated his own daughter. She bowed her head and slowly the tears started to come. Gibby looked over and frowned, he wanted to know what was wrong with her and if he could be of any assistance. Sure, he intended malice against Sam, but never anything against Valerie.

"Is something the matter?" Gibby whispered. Valerie closed her eyes and slowly shook her head, she couldn't tell him. She couldn't tell anyone what was on her mind. Hell, she couldn't trust a single person in this room. "You know, Hector lets us have one time during the day we can be away for like three hours. That's each of us. Maybe you'd like to get out of the mansion? De-stress a little?"

"That would be nice," Valerie said in a quiet voice. Gibby smiled and nodded his head as he looked over at Hector, who was busy talking to Nevel and Jeremy. He cleared his throat and walked over to Hector.

"Hey, Valerie and I would like to get out of here for a while. Walk around. Is that all right?"

"Yeah, do whatever," Hector said quietly. He knew he'd have his people monitoring them closely. He didn't want them doing anything out of the ordinary.

"Thanks." Gibby and Valerie left the mansion and started walking down the street, it really felt nice to have a bit of fresh air. They were still basically chained to that mansion, if they tried to escape, there was nothing they could do about it. "I'm sorry you got dragged into this fucked up mess, Val. You have no business being here."

"Why the hell do any of you care anyway?"

"I know we seem like bad people…"

"You _are_. Do you not see what's going on?"

"You know, you're not the only one being forced to stay here, you know. I just saw one of my best friends go ballistic weeks ago and convince an ex-convict to kidnap Sam. How do you think I feel? I know I went a little crazy too, but I didn't want anything this bad to happen."

"You should have _known_, though." Gibby frowned and pushed his hands into his pockets. He supposed she was right, but what could he do about it now? He had been too crazy before to really know any better, and he just kept going further and further into the muck. He didn't really want to talk about it, he wanted to discuss other matters with her. Anything other than what they were doing there. He looked back and frowned, he wasn't sure if anyone was within earshot or not, but it seemed nobody was.

"Valerie, you don't mind me asking this…" Valerie looked at him carefully as they rounded the corner and walked into an alleyway. This was the only way Gibby could know that nobody was in earshot. "How um…How far along are you?"

"What?" Valerie's eyes widened and she scoffed, laughing lightly. How far along was she? What kind of question was that? "What on earth are you talking about? Okay maybe you _have_ lost your marbles." She laughed again, nervously, and started to walk away. Gibby frowned and grabbed her arm, holding her back. She grunted and looked back at him.

"Valerie, I saw them. You kept them hidden from everyone else, but I saw you throwing away pregnancy tests in a plastic bag then a dumpster." Valerie frowned as he released her arm. She couldn't hide it anymore, then. No one would know, since she probably wouldn't start showing. It was in her family, nobody seemed to show whenever they got pregnant. She fell against a wall and slowly sank to the ground, burying her face in her hands. "Valerie, I'm not going to hurt you, and I won't tell the others. I promise."

"I know, it's just…I shouldn't _be_ here! What am I going to do when I have the baby? What's going to happen? I can't lose my baby, Gibby. I just can't!" Gibby slowly nodded his head and placed his hand on her shoulder. He would help her any way he could. Right now, they knew Hector was volatile, so they weren't exactly sure what he would do. He didn't seem like the type of person to want any harm to come to babies, but they weren't sure. They would have to find out.

"Just answer my question. How far along are you?"

"Three months…"

"Wow. Does Jonah know?" Valerie rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, staring away.

"He's _dead_, isn't he?"

"Valerie, I'm pretty sure he's alive. I mean, we didn't find his body and his family hightailed it out of town." Valerie chuckled lightly and smiled, her eyes lighting up with the joy she felt whenever she heard from Jonah. "So, does he know?"

"No. I never got to tell him. I was actually two months before all this started, and I didn't find out until after Sam was taken. I wanted to tell him, but I didn't get the chance. I'm actually eleven weeks into the pregnancy, I think."

"You think? We should get you to a gynecologist."

"Can't, remember? Kind of trapped here with a creep who has an iron fist. There's nothing I can do…"

"You'd do anything for the baby, wouldn't you?"

"Yes, what mother wouldn't?"

"Well somehow, you need to contact Jonah and let him know about this. I don't know how you're going to do it, or when you're going to do it, but you need to do it." Valerie slowly nodded her head as Gibby gave her a friendly hug.

"I'm scared Gibby. I really am."

"I know."

"I don't know why you're being nice to me. It's like there's two sides of you, the nice side of you and the cruel side of you when it comes to Sam." Gibby frowned and looked up into the sky. He couldn't explain it, really. Whenever Sam was in his presence, something just triggered inside of him and made him lose all control. Then he would lash out at her. He hated Sam, he really did. He thought she was the bane of his existence.

"I guess when it comes to people like you, and little babies, I must have a soft spot." Valerie laughed as Gibby smiled and helped her up. They decided to continue their walk and get home later, fortunately, as Gibby wanted, nobody heard the conversation. They didn't want anyone around there finding out about Valerie's pregnancy until the time was right.

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Hm...review I suppose


	11. Still Friends

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 11 (Still Friends)

Carly sat in her dressing room, putting powder on her face. She was being put in some small action roles and hoped she could progress to become a big star. She loved action roles, and she loved drama. That wasn't to say romance wasn't a good role for her either. She was going to try a little bit of everything, but have a main genre either way. She came off as shallow to some people, but she wasn't, and she wanted people to know that about her.

Freddie, she still made sure to keep in touch every now and then. She didn't know what he was going to do with his life, but she knew what she wanted to do. She wanted to act. She stared at herself in the mirror and frowned, she missed Sam. Sam should be here with her, but she wasn't. Why did it seem so hard to move on? Perhaps because she felt Sam was still alive? She wasn't sure, but she was pissed when Freddie told her the cops stopped looking. Why the hell would they stop looking?

Carly frowned and picked up her phone, she dialed Freddie up and waited for his answer. After the phone rang for about a minute, he finally picked up. "It took you long enough," Carly said flatly.

"Sorry, I've been busy," Freddie responded. He had surrounded himself in his studies, he didn't have a lot of time for free time anymore. He had to keep himself busy, because when he wasn't busy, he thought of her. When he thought of her, he hated it. He missed the smell of her hair, the feel of her skin against his, the sound of her laughter. God, he wanted to find her so badly. "I guess you miss her too, Carly?"

"Her memory is the greatest thing ever, but it's become like a thorn in my side. Every time I think of her, I can't help but to want to cry." It was becoming problematic now, but at least whenever she was rehearsing for a scene, it didn't bother her so much. She only let the thoughts of Sam get to her when she was in her dressing room. "What has it been, four weeks now? One week since the cops decided to stop looking for her…"

"Yeah, and did you hear about what happened to Sam's mom?"

"Yeah…" Freddie knew Amy was still among the living, as he knew about his mother's division, but he had to still keep it a secret until the day came that she retired or left the force. "You know mom's come up with a possible lead, or maybe lost a lead if you look at it that way."

"What's that?"

"The person who shot Amy said Hector wasn't involved in Sam's disappearance." Carly frowned and slowly shook her head, she honestly was surprised by that. The way he had looked at Sam when he was around her, the way he seemed, it was just too off for her. "Maybe he isn't involved, but we may never know. It's as if he's dropped off the face of the earth."

"Well we have to find him Freddie." Freddie raised his eyebrow as Carly turned around in her chair. She stood up and walked over to her closet and began going through her outfits. "I'm not giving up on Sam. I refuse to believe all hope is lost. She's alive Freddie, I just know it. I can feel it."

"So you think so too?" Carly smiled and nodded her head, she knew Freddie thought Sam was alive somewhere. He wasn't about to give up on her, not in a million years. He loved that woman, she was the only one constantly on his mind. "I just can't believe the way it all went down, Carly. She just shows up, and then she's gone…" A tear left his eye and he slowly groaned in frustration. He hated crying, but it was at least a sign that he was still human. "I need her back. I need her in my life

"We both do. Have you heard from Jonah?"

"I don't really care to right now, to be honest." He was actually still a bit miffed over how Jonah treated Sam, even though it was two years ago. It didn't bother him much anymore, but he still didn't talk to him. "I only know that his family wound up moving…where, I don't know."

"Yeah, I can see him moving after everything that's happened. Gibby disappears, Jeremy's gone, Nevel and Valerie vanish into the air…their families murdered. Valerie's family's still alive though, right?"

"Yeah…" He was stunned by the murders and disappearances, and actually wondered if they had all been connected to Sam in any way. "We probably ought to investigate that, even though the cops don't want anyone to do that…"

"I know, it _sucks!"_ Carly groaned and tossed a back tank top and jeans onto her bed. She sighed and looked up at the clock. "They're worried though that iCarly might have been targeted, so they hired a personal bodyguard for _me_."

"Oh yeah? That's funny." Freddie chuckled and Carly slowly shook their heads. They didn't think she would ever wind up in a situation where she'd need a guard, but then if she ever became a major star, she might need a bodyguard to get her away from all those rabid fans. "Then again, maybe you do need someone to guard you from all those creepy crawlies that you're afraid of." He smirked and Carly narrowed her eyes.

"I am _not_ afraid of spiders! And it was _one time_." Freddie laughed and recalled a memory during the summer when a spider had crawled onto Carly's arm when she was asleep. It was the smallest thing, but when she woke up and saw it, she shrieked so loud, it must have woken everybody in the apartment complex. Hell, Della even ran over to find out if anyone had just been murdered in the middle of the night.

"Mom was so ticked off at you."

"Oh shut up, you." Freddie snickered once again and Carly rolled her eyes. "So, her cell phone still is never answered?" Freddie knew who Carly was talking about. He sighed sadly and looked down at his desk.

"No, you've tried it?"

"Yeah…" They both tried Sam's phone, possibly a hundred times in the last four weeks. It would often ring and then the voicemail would pick up. After the first couple weeks, it started going straight to voicemail. "I'm starting to think maybe she was kidnapped. I don't know if she would have run away, like we originally thought."

"Well we know she was kidnapped…" They just didn't want to accept it. Hell, a part of them still didn't accept that she was kidnapped. When Hector had been questioned just the week of her disappearance, he said he looked high and low in that theatre for her. He was so distraught, they just let him go. "Who could have kidnapped her, Freddie? Who could have taken our Sam?"

"I don't know, but I plan to get to the bottom of this. I don't know when that's going to be done, but I will." He knew things were at a standstill as far as police investigation went, and that made it harder for him, but he wasn't going to give up just as quickly as they had. "The cops were bought out, that's what my father said. At least he's sure of that. He overheard the Chief talking to someone that day…"

"Well if that's the case, I've lost all respect for Seattle's police department until they can actually get past that." Freddie nodded as Carly flipped on her television. She started flipping aimlessly, looking for something that was on, but found nothing. "So, am I right to have heard from some of the others at Ridgeway, you and Jake Krandall have become friends?"

"Yeah, we hang out every now and then." Carly chuckled and smiled, she was happy for Freddie, but shocked at the same time. Didn't he not like Jake?

"I thought you hated him."

"No, he's cool now. He's a bit perverted though."

"Now you're hanging out with perverts?"

"Shut up, you." Carly laughed and flipped off the television. Now she could get under his skin. "You know, I've taken up writing as a hobby of mine."

"That's good, are you going to work on getting your stuff published?"

"Yeah, maybe one day…I want to go into the film department as well and start a company of film critics."

"Oh no,_ you_ rating movies? What will the world come to?"

"Look out Miss Shay, I'll be hunting your movies down some day." Freddie smirked and laughed, Carly joined in the laughter. It was true what they said, laughter really was the best medicine for pain. "I just need a degree in journalism, then I'm going to start working with the print media in broadcasting. Maybe own my own company one day."

"There's not much need for film critics anymore, you know. But it's great that you have goals. Isn't it going to be difficult?"

"I've already gotten started. I've joined the high school paper and I'm working on getting a job with the newspaper." Carly smiled and closed her eyes, she was extremely proud of her friend.

"I'm proud of you, Freddie. I'm glad you're trying your best to succeed."

"Thanks, and the same to you. You do still go to school, right?"

"You know I am. They have me going to a private school for actors, though." They both had high hopes and high dreams, now they just had to work extremely hard to get those dreams achieved. It would call for a highly busy schedule, so in their free time, they'd have to search for Sam in any way they could. "I have to go, though…I need to meet my new and first bodyguard."

"Good luck with that." Freddie snickered as Carly rolled her eyes. She didn't really want a bodyguard, nor did she think she needed one. It seemed she had no choice, though. In the few weeks she'd been there, the director just loved her, he didn't want anything to happen to his star actor. She'd become like a second daughter to him..

"Oh shut up. How's Spencer, by the way, before I go?"

"He's doing great. Misses you to death, but he's doing well."

"Well good. I guess I'll talk to you later, Freddie. Goodbye for now."

"Good hearing from you, Carly." Carly smiled as they hung up their phones. She sighed and dressed into her outfit. After about five minutes, she walked out of her dressing room and found her supervisor. The man looked at her and smiled.

"Hey Miss Shay, are you ready to meet your new bodyguard?"

"Yep, lead me to her."

"Gladly. She's in the next room. You know, she was a teacher at one point of time."

"Oh? That's nice."

"Yeah, she taught at your old school a couple years back, I believe." Carly raised her eyebrows in wonder and followed him to the next room. She tried to figure out what teacher could have joined the ranks of the law force. There was only one that she could think of, but it seemed too unlikely. When they entered the room, she saw none other than Ms. Briggs, she was standing with her back turned towards them.

"Ms. _Briggs!" _The director blinked as Ms. Briggs turned around and smiled subtly. Carly's jaw dropped and her eyes were frozen in shock.

"Yeah, she quit her job at the school a few years back and went into the criminal justice field. She heard you needed a bodyguard and offered, seeing her credentials, we gave her the job. She's really good."

"Hello Carly," Ms. Briggs stated calmly. Happy to see the girl.

"I-I…I need to go back to my dressing room and scream for a minute or two." The former teacher and the director watched with raised eyebrows as Carly left the area. They were sure she'd get used to the idea soon enough. Ms. Briggs blinked and looked at the man.

"Is there a problem, Mr. Jackson?"

"She'll come around eventually."

* * *

Shock, and prepare for the next few chapters as some of the GREATEST emotional moments and action chapters of anything I've ever written. Shame only a few will ever read them. Thanks to all that are reviewing, you've given me hope XD ^_^


	12. Father and Son

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 12 (Father and Son)

Jonah sighed as he walked through the large house that his Granddad owned. George Bryant tended to stay away from everyone, and for good reason. He was one hundred years old and honestly believed he could handle himself. He did have a nurse that came to check on him regularly, but once Jonah and his family arrived, he had no need for that anymore. He didn't expect to be taking in his granddaughter's family, he thought he was done with them when Denise passed on. At least, they hadn't visited him often anymore.

Jonah found George in the viewing room. His house had a perfect view of the mountains, they were everywhere. "Hey Granddad, how are you?" Jonah asked as he walked up to the man. He learned that he shouldn't sneak up on George, things could end very badly if he did that. George looked at him and smiled slightly.

"Look at that view. This place has never seen anything less than peace." Jonah stared out the window and breathed in. He was relieved that they could be safe here, that they could be peaceful. "You do know that I am happy to have you guys here."

"And I'm eternally grateful for that, Granddad." It had been late into the night when he was awakened by his phone blaring out four weeks ago. Michael called him up and said that they needed to stay with him and weren't sure how long. They were also bringing along Michael's father, Ryan. Something had happened to Jonah and he said the family wasn't safe, that George's home was the only safe place around. What had happened to Jonah had been somehow connected to what happened to Gibby, Jeremy, and Nevel, along with their families.

"Your father sounded frantic in that phone call." Jonah smiled slightly and slowly nodded his head. Outside, he could see his dad playing in the yard with Olivia. They were playing catch with Ryan, who was just about as youthful as everyone else. "I hadn't heard from him in three years." Denise passed away five years earlier, from cancer, it made her 'see' many things. "I almost said no, but then I thought of what my granddaughter had told me before she died."

"What was that?" Jonah frowned as George closed his eyes and breathed in.

"She told me to be careful, to not get too close to many people and that one day your father was going to call me for help and I was not to turn him down. She said she was having visions of annihilation. She had visions of you lying in a pool of blood, visions of her daughter drowning in blood and other vile things…and of your father seeing hell before death." Jonah frowned and closed his eyes, he didn't want to tell George what had really been going on, he didn't want to tell him that maybe as crazy as Denise had become in those years, she wasn't so crazy after all.

"You know, you did save us…" George slowly nodded as Jonah leaned up against a wall. "Dad might not have told you much, but my family was in danger."

"Yes, he said that. He told me you told him to grab everything and leave." Jonah nodded and watched as his sister tackled Michael to the ground. They were laughing. Ryan crossed his arms and smiled as he watched the two. Jonah didn't know what he would do if he had lost them. He didn't have the heart to tell them how serious the danger they were in was, but he had a feeling they knew. He didn't know if Sam had been found by Jeremy or not, but when he went to the police about it, they said they weren't working on her case anymore. Basically, he was talking to a brick wall. It was horrible, he couldn't go to anybody anymore. How could he get Valerie and Sam out of captivity? How could he rescue them? Maybe people would listen to an actress, who knows. "Jonah, I also get a feeling…it is good that you survived, because there are a number of people who will need you."

"I know, there's a lot that I have to take care of." Jonah would never stop thinking of a way to get Valerie out of there, nor would he stop at anything to help Sam free. However, right now the best he could do was talk to Valerie on the radio whenever they got a chance. He had to rely on her to contact him, because his contacting her could severely put them in jeopardy. He didn't want anything bad to happen to her. George looked up at Freddie and frowned, he could see the pained look in his eyes.

"I know that look." Jonah blinked and shook his head in confusion, George had just brought him back into reality. He raised an eyebrow and stared at his Granddad. "That look is for a girl, isn't it?" He wasn't sure how to respond to the question, but surely he didn't know of Valerie. "You know, there's a lot of spiritual sense in these mountains. Just pray that the spirits that be will protect your lady and keep her well from harm." Jonah smiled weakly and shrugged his shoulders.

"Yeah Granddad, I've been praying that as many chances as I've had. That look was for a girl…and I'm concerned about her safety, and for her family." George nodded and his lips creased into a frown.

"I would help her family if I could, but I don't have any more room." Jonah and his family took up the guest bedrooms in the house. George hadn't seen his house so cluttered when they all moved in, bringing all their belongings with them. Finally they had unpacked and cleaned up the house, restoring the order the way it needed to be. "You must stay strong, Jonah. Always stay strong."

"I plan on it." Jonah smiled as he watched his family run back inside the house. He and George turned around a few minutes later to see Olivia rushing inside. She hugged her big brother and inspected his body. "What's wrong, Olivia?"

"I still have nightmares…" Jonah smiled sadly and rubbed Olivia's head, he hated the way things had taken place and wished things could have been different. He felt a massive amount of guilt for everything that was going on. Had he said no to Jeremy, had he and Valerie not have gotten involved, then maybe things would have been different. Maybe their families wouldn't be in danger. "Do you have scars?"

"Nothing physical, no…"

"Where is Valerie? Why aren't you two together?" Tears started to escape her eyes as she closed them and buried her head into his shirt. She was so young, she didn't deserve all that was going on. "I miss playing with Veronica, and Vixen." Jonah's eyes widened and he looked up, he realized he still needed to get back to Valerie's family. They would be in as much danger as his family had been. He sighed softly and knelt down, taking his little sister in a hug.

"Olivia, there are some things in this world you don't need to hear right now. I know you want answers, and I know you're scared, but don't be. We're safe with Granddad, nothing is going to happen to us. As far as Valerie, she is…she's going to be okay." Jonah slowly stood up and closed his eyes. He didn't know what to say about her nightmares, he just knew she needed comfort. "I'm going to see if I can get you to see your friends again, okay?" He knew he owed it to Valerie's family to get them out of the eye of danger. They must surely be fearful, since it looked like something happened to the families of every one of the youths that had disappeared. If this were the case, then surely they had to be next.

"When are you going to tell us what happened?" Jonah's father's voice ran through his ears and he looked up to see his father in the room. "Olivia, won't you go talk to Grandpa?"

"Okay Daddy," Olivia replied. She bounded out of the room and Michael smiled as she ran off. He sighed and closed his eyes, shutting the door and leaning against the wall.

"I just moved the entire family here on a hunch, and out of fear because you came home nearly dead. Even I'm having nightmares. Don't you think you owe us an explanation?" Jonah's hands closed and he slowly nodded his head, but it was all too painful for him to talk about right now. Not only that, but he had to take matters into his own hands. No one was safe anymore.

"Dad, I love you very much, and I appreciate everything you've done for this family." Michael raised his eyebrow as Jonah walked over to him and gave him a hug. He was very confused about why his son was acting this way. "There are some fathers in this world that are monsters. I was watching you play outside with Olivia and I was happy because I knew what I always have, that you will never _ever_ let anything bad happen to her. You would never hurt your own children."

"Of course I wouldn't, you two are my children, I need to take care of you. I wouldn't want anything to happen to either one of you." Michael was right, they deserved the best explanation possible. He didn't know how to say it, but he needed to say it either way.

"I've taken things in my own hands. There isn't anything I can do right now, though." Jonah knew if he were a father, he would make sure to take great care of his children. He always looked up to his father, no matter how it seemed otherwise. "The man that took Sam away…it was a group of people…" Michael's eyebrows rose as he slowly sat down in a chair, he had a feeling he wasn't going to like what he was hearing. "They beat me, they broke me, but my spirit isn't out yet. I'm strong, just like you, my father." Jonah slowly closed his hands and looked towards the door. "They have Valerie too, and they're forcing her to do their bidding. If she talks, and even if I talk, her family pays the price."

"Oh my god." Michael froze with fear as he recalled what he'd seen in the papers, so that is what it could have come to had he not followed his son's suggestion. He felt a dark chill come over him and he closed his eyes, cringing in disgust and fear. What would have happened had they not left? "And you've gone to the police?"

"They're not doing anything, they refuse to look at it and say I don't know what I'm talking about. Hell, the damn people at that hospital wanted to put me in the damn mental ward because I kept shouting in my sleep. I was having nightmares!"

"You know, you never tell us about those…"

"They're just dreams." Jonah closed his eyes and sighed. He was working to get past everything that happened. He couldn't handle loud noises very well, he'd have to get used to the sound of banging. That was hard enough, since his grandfather usually closed the door a bit too hard. "I had a number of freakish dreams. For instance, there was this girl that was trapped with them…she looked like Valerie, but she was a little kid." Michael chuckled and crossed his arms.

"Maybe she has a kid." Jonah frowned and thought about the circumstances. What if his dream was a premonition, what if Hector or someone else hurt Valerie? No! He would die before he let that happen. "Which brings me to another subject, Jonah…"

"What?" Jonah was starting to pale, he hadn't really thought of the dangers that Valerie could be in. He thought about how scared she must be, but he didn't know what they might do to her in there.

"I'm not so sure you and Valerie haven't um…" Michael closed his eyes and Jonah swallowed, seeing where this was going. How would his dad know anything about what he and his girlfriend might have done? Then again, they always seemed to figure things out. "When I was cleaning your bedroom that night…before we moved up here, I found a pair of women's underwear beneath your bed." Michael smirked and closed his eyes as he got up and walked over to Jonah, placing his hand on the boy's shoulder. "Now you know that phrase, Father knows best? It applies in several situations."

"Uh." Jonah swallowed hard and beads of sweat began to form at his forehead. Shit, he thought, Valerie _had_ been feeling a tad on the nauseous side not that long ago. She couldn't be pregnant though, no, it was impossible.

"Well see the underwear was a bit too large for Olivia, and I don't believe we've ever had to buy silky white underwear with lace on it for her. That means, you're either experimenting with some sort of lifestyle change, or more realistically, you and Valerie are having sex." Jonah twitched with annoyance at his father's snide joke, but he had to admit, his dad did often find places to put the oddest humor.

"Yes dad, we had sex…maybe once or twice, but that was it…" He wasn't going to lie to his father. He had more respect than that. Besides, his dad was a hard-working man and a very good father to both he and Olivia, so he deserved a lot more than lies. Michael frowned with disappointment, Jonah truly did hate that feeling, but at least Michael was proud that he'd told the truth.

"Why?"

"We…wanted to know what it felt like." Michael breathed in and closed his eyes, it was an honest answer. In today's world, everyone seemed like they were having sex, so it was normal for a couple of teenagers with raging hormones to want to know what it was like. "We liked it the first time, so we tried it a second time."

"You started getting addicted to it, didn't you?"

"Yeah…Should I be ashamed of it?" Michael shook his head and Jonah looked up into his eyes.

"No, you should never be ashamed of the feeling it brings, of the joy and of the love. However, you should know that it is such a joining, permanent act. It's comprised of the strongest feelings, the strongest emotion, the strongest passion. It isn't for everyone, it is only for two people who love each other and are destined to spend their life together, and for two people who _know_ how powerful it is." Jonah slowly nodded as Michael continued to explain it. Jonah knew how special making love was, and understood his father was explaining just when the right time is. "You and Valerie should never feel ashamed for wanting to feel that emotion together, but you should be more aware…that it is not always the right time."

"She could end up pregnant. We're not ready for children."

"Exactly, but when you understand what it takes to be a father and how hard it is…that's when you start to become a man, and that's when you can be ready emotionally to have a child. When you are financially stable, that is also when you're ready financially to have one."

"I know what it takes, I've seen you all these years." Jonah smiled as Michael chuckled, flattered by the statement obviously. "Anyway, dad, as nice as it is to have this chat, I have something I need to do."

"What is that?"

` "Save Valerie's family." Michael raised his eyebrow and watched as his son walked out the door. He was always going to be proud of the man his son was growing to be. There was at least a couple hundred miles between where they were and Seattle, so he needed to stop his son from doing something on the spur of the moment and to plan.

"Uh Jonah!" He ran outside and Jonah looked at him from the kitchen table, smiling lightly.

"Don't worry pops, I got this. I know it's a long trip and there might be people watching Valerie's family unbeknownst to them…after all, they don't want the Williams escaping, right? I have to plan first, and to be discreet. You know something, dad? One day, I hope to be a good man like you, and to take care of my children just as well as you. You think I could do that?" Michael smiled once more as he sat down at the table, he would help Jonah to plan for Valerie's family to be safe.

"Yeah son, I think you'll make a great father someday."

* * *

Getting closer to the action, which starts in chapter 14. Chapter 13 then makes the most emotional chapter yet


	13. Emotional Moment

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 13 (Emotional)

Valerie looked at her cell phone and saw she had several messages and missed calls, they were from her sisters, mom, dad, and various friends. She looked over at Sam as she sat next to her. Hector allowed Sam the right to move around the house, but she still had a few designated rooms she couldn't go and was basically bound to the point where she couldn't escape. The doors were locked and all, there was no way she was getting out. When Hector wasn't around, Jeremy was in charge, and that was when he did not allow Sam any free will whatsoever. In some respect, Jeremy was worse than Hector.

"Why don't you call your family?" Sam asked quietly. Valerie was the one nicest to her, she didn't understand why Valerie was with these people. Had she wanted to hurt her? Did she know what they were planning? Or was she just an innocent bystander caught up in all this crap? "Can't you reach them, let them know where you're at?"

"No. You know those men have this whole house under surveillance. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if there was a camera in the fucking bathrooms." Sam shuddered at the thought that the men could be spying on Valerie going to the restroom. As for her, they didn't let her go to the bathroom in the toilets unless she was freely roaming around. She had to use a hole in the ground. At least, Nevel was the one that had to clean it out, that was the most satisfaction she got of it all. "I know my mom must be having a heart attack with worry. My dad's already incredibly busy with his job, and now that I'm gone…" Valerie sobbed once and Sam started rubbing her back. "I think I'm just a wreck these days."

"I don't know why you're here, Valerie. I don't think you should be…" Valerie slowly shook her head and Sam took a deep breath. "You're scared…like I am…I can see that. Jonah tried to save me, you know. I don't know why he was involved in all this either." Valerie slowly looked up and Sam closed her eyes, trying to push away the nightmares that seemed to plague her mind. "Did you guys want to hurt me too?"

"No. We never knew all this was going to happen. Jeremy came to us and told us it was just going to be a harmless _prank_."

"A prank? That's what he called it?" Valerie nodded her head as Sam clenched her hand up. She hated Jeremy, she hated him more than any of the boys there. Nevel was just annoying, Gibby was Gibby, a mass of confusion, but Jeremy of all of them was the most vile and disgusting man she'd ever seen. "Didn't he _know_ what he was doing when he got together with my father?"

"That's just it, Gibby told me that Jeremy didn't know Hector would go crazy like this." Sam flinched and placed her fingers on her forehead. He was the one that she was most afraid of, because of how he was to her. These people were violent, they were vicious. "They told us it was just going to be a prank for how much you guys hurt them. They coaxed Jonah into it by showing him a photo of that wedgie bounce thing and poking at his mind." Sam frowned as she thought back to that prank against Jonah, she had regretted it for so long. She knew it had to hurt him, and she had forgiven him now.

"I hope he knows how sorry I am for that."

"I think he does, and I think he's done everything he can to put that behind himself." Valerie smiled and her eyes lit up when she thought of him. "You should see how he is with me, he's like the most perfect boyfriend!" Sam smiled too, smiling for the first time since she'd been taken away. She was thinking of Freddie, and how he confessed his love for her.

"Freddie is quite the boyfriend. I'm willing to bet he's looking for me." Sam didn't know about Jonah, she was still a bit confused with everything that had happened on that fateful night. She knew Valerie told her Jonah survived, but she wondered about his family. "I don't know how I can trust any of these other men, though. Do you see how some of them look at me?"

"I know. Of them all, I'm scared most of Jeremy…" Sam frowned and nodded her head as she gave Valerie a comforting hug. "I shouldn't be here Sam, but neither should you, and I guess that's why I'm here…I don't know."

"No, you're here because Jeremy tricked you guys."

"I can't leave, I can't talk, I can't do anything…or else they might kill me."

"Gibby doesn't seem like he'd let that happen to you. I know he doesn't give a shit about me, but he's friendly with you."

"Jeremy can still hurt him. And then where will I be when he comes for me?" Valerie stiffened up and quickly closed her eyes, shaking her head. She tried not to think about things like that. She looked at the list of missed calls on her phone, so far there were about 94 in a four week radius. 29 of them were from her mother, 20 from Vanessa, 16 from her father, 10 from Veronica, and the other 19 missed calls were from other friends of hers. "Most of the calls have stopped now, but mom calls at least once a day." Valerie shook as a river of tears started to escape her eyes. "How could I call her and tell her that her baby girl's trapped in a house of psychos and living in fear every day of her life and that the cops won't look for me?"

"Valerie…" Valerie started bawling and fell into Sam's lap, letting Sam comfort her.

"Who's going to give my mommy hope? She may never see me again. She's not that strong, Sam! This could break her…"

"You seem to have a strong family though. Your sisters, your dad, they'll take care of your mom. Who else is going to, I guess?" It reminded her of her own mother, how would Amy be faring? She was strong, so it wasn't like she was going to let it get the best of her. "Call them, let them know you're okay. I mean, it's not like they're doing anything to you…it's just…Jeremy."

"I can't, I can't break it to my family. Besides, what if I'm caught using my cell phone? I might lose it!" Jeremy would for sure destroy the phone. He had been letting the power get the best of him. Both Valerie and Sam hoped Jonah would come back and kick his ass. After all, he deserved it. She hadn't been able to contact Jonah for some time either, considering the heavy surveillance they were in. She didn't know where or when good times were to talk about it.

"Well at least talk to them. Do you even know where we're at?"

"Uh…somewhere in America…" Sam frowned and closed her eyes, so the group wasn't aware of where Hector was taking them either. It made since, so they wouldn't tell anyone anything.

"Here, you said each of you guys has your own surveillance system to see all the camera's in the house, right?"

"Yeah, but I don't use them." She pointed to a desk with a computer on it. They didn't have internet access, the computer was only used to see the cameras. Sam walked over to the computer and started scanning all the cameras. She chuckled wryly and looked over.

"Well, good news is…there are no cameras in the bathroom."

"I suppose so." Valerie walked over as Sam continued looking for the cameras. There was a camera in every bedroom, the living rooms, the dining areas, the game rooms, basically every single room was filled with cameras. Gibby was asleep in his room, which was the one next to Valerie's. Jeremy wasn't anywhere to be found, and Nevel was in the kitchen.

"So go into your bathroom and talk to your mother." Valerie smiled and nodded her head as she slowly walked into the bathroom. Sam followed her and shut the door. Valerie flipped her phone on and dialed her mother's phone.

"V-Valerie?" Viola's shaky voice answered the phone. It was strained, as though heavily stressed. Valerie sobbed once and her cheeks were once again wet with tears. She hadn't heard her mother's voice in so long. "Valerie sweetie, is that you? Oh baby please tell me you're safe…"

"M-Mommy, D-Daddy…" Valerie's lips slowly curled into a smile as Viola flipped her speakerphone on. "Is 'Nessa there?"

"I'm here baby sis," Vanessa's voice rang through the phone and into Valerie's ears like music. "Where are you?"

"I-I can't answer that. I honestly don't know where I'm at…"

"Hi Mrs. Williams," Sam said with a slow smile. It was nice to hear the voice of a good person after so long of pure hate. Viola gasped and you could tell she was crying.

"Samantha Puckett, you're there too?"

"Valerie, did they take both of you?" It was Vincent Williams, he was greatly concerned for his daughter and needed to know where she was. He wanted to find her.

"Mommy, Daddy, is that sister?" Asked a little girl. Valerie gasped softly and closed her eyes, it was Vixen. Sweet, angelic Vixen, her favorite baby sister.

"Yes it's me Vixen, how are your dance classes?"

"I don't know, I don't like not knowing where you are!" Valerie sniffed as Sam started to wipe Valerie's eyes with a tissue.

"I know Lil' Vix, I know you are all scared."

"Valerie you sound like you've been crying!" Viola said urgently. She wanted to be there to hold her baby girl, she wanted to take care of her. "Please tell me what's going on."

"Mom, how is your health?"

"I'm fine baby, I'm fine…Vanessa and Victoria have been doing the best they can to make sure to fill in for you." Valerie closed her eyes and started sobbing, she missed her family so much. Sam rubbed her back and quickly looked up, she heard something.

"Oh no, Valerie," Sam whispered fearfully. Somebody had just entered Valerie's bedroom. It didn't sound like Hector's footsteps, his were a bit heavier, like thuds. She would never forget what his walk sounded like. There were so many things she wanted to forget, and he was one of them. "Someone's here."

"What?" Valerie asked as she looked up nervously.

"Valerie? Valerie are you okay?" Viola asked quickly, her breathing rising. "You know, it always feels like someone's watching…Ever since the Browns left, I've been so afraid…"

"Valerie! I know you're in there!" Valerie and Sam gasped, it was Jeremy's voice. He pounded the door violently, he was going to break in. Valerie lowered the phone and swallowed hard.

"I'm going to the bathroom!" Valerie shouted.

"Don't give me that, you little bitch!" Jeremy finally kicked the door open. Nevel was there as well. Nevel ran in and Sam tried to block them from getting to Valerie.

"Get out of my way slut," Nevel said as he smacked Sam in the face. She screamed and fell to the ground, clutching her face and biting her lips as the tears fell from her eyes. Valerie screamed as Jeremy grabbed her arm.

"No please, please don't!" Valerie pleaded as Jeremy glared at the phone.

"Talking to someone, are you?" Jeremy asked spitefully. He growled and narrowed his eyes, jerking Valerie's arm and making her scream out with pain. She clutched that phone like it was her lifeline. "You know better than this! Do I have to show you what's going to happen when you act out like this?"

"You leave her alone, asshole!" Sam said as she slowly rose up. She didn't know what she could do, she was just as equally afraid of these men.

"Did I not say shut up?" Nevel shouted angrily as he hit Sam one more time.

"Valerie! Valerie what's going on!" Vanessa pleaded for her sister to respond. "Mom's fainting over here, please be okay!" Next was Vincent's voice, angry and hateful.

"I don't know who you are, but if you hurt my daughter, you're going to have to face me!" Vincent shouted aggressively. Jeremy grabbed the phone from Valerie's hand while squeezing her wrist tightly with his other hand. Valerie cried out as Jeremy put the phone to his ear.

"Sorry sis and dad," Jeremy mocked while narrowing his glare on the girls. "Valerie can't talk right now." He hung up the phone and threw it in the toilet. Valerie cried out again as Jeremy started to drag her out of her room. "I'm going to teach you to act out like this." Nevel followed Jeremy like a loyal mutt and Sam started to panic. She ran out the door and watched them drag her into Jeremy's room.

"No," Sam whispered quietly. "Gibby!" Sam quickly ran into Gibby's room and shook him awake. She knew she might be hurt for waking him from his sleep, but she didn't care. Gibby growled and quickly sat up, glaring angrily at Sam.

"What the _hell_ do think you're doing?" Gibby asked while rising. Sam flinched and closed her eyes, fearing that he was going to hurt her.

"Please don't hurt me…it's Valerie…Valerie's in trouble!"

"Valerie? What's going on?"

"Jeremy caught her on the phone."

"Shit." Gibby quickly ran out of his bedroom and hurried to Jeremy's door. It was locked. He could hear Valerie screaming and it sounded like punches were being thrown. Gibby quickly cracked his neck and took a few steps back. Sam watched with worry as he ran for the door and busted it down with his shoulder. Jeremy was on top of Valerie, choking and hitting her. Nevel was watching as she was beaten. "Get off her, asshole!"

"Gibby?" Jeremy asked curiously. Nevel knew better than to get into a fight with Gibby, he knew he would lose. He quickly ran out of the room, he didn't want to be fingered as having been involved in beating Valerie. After all, if he was, he knew he would be reprimanded by Hector.

"Hector forbade you to do anything to her!" Gibby quickly punched Jeremy in the face and the scrawny youth fell to the side. Valerie rolled off the bed and clutched her shoulders, crying hard. Sam ran to her and knelt beside her, wrapping her arm around Valerie's shoulder.

"You dare defy _me?_" Jeremy got up and punched Gibby in the gut. Gibby growled and grabbed Jeremy's arm and pulled it over his shoulder, he bent forward and sent Jeremy in an arc, crashing into the ground. Jeremy groaned and rubbed his head, his body was in incredible pain from the blow. Sam inspected Valerie's face and saw that she had a black eye. She growled and cussed out Jeremy.

"How could you! It's me you don't like, why would you hurt Valerie? What right do you have to hit her?"

"That's quite enough!" Hector's voice boomed from the doorway and Sam froze. She suddenly felt like she was about to throw up. Gibby and Jeremy looked over as Hector walked into the room, Nevel followed him. He grabbed Jeremy from the ground and pulled him up. "Nevel told me what was going on, I don't buy for a second that he wasn't involved. I know Valerie broke a rule, but she's part of this team, do you fucking understand that? I _forbade _you from doing anything to her. If anyone is going to be punished, it is you. Not her." Valerie looked up, she was shaking like a leaf. Gibby walked over to her and helped her up with Sam. He looked over at Hector, who gestured them out. "And close the door when you leave."

"Yes sir," Gibby replied. They led Valerie out of the bedroom and shut the door. They stopped and breathed in for a moment, listening in silence as Jeremy and Nevel screamed out, receiving a fierce beating from Hector. They knew when those two came out of the room, they were going to be a million times worse off than Valerie was. Gibby turned to Valerie and sighed. "Are you all right?"

"I feel like someone just pummeled me with bricks…"

"It's okay, I'll stand outside your door while you get some rest, okay?" Valerie nodded as they walked her to her room. He looked at Sam and frowned, he wanted to send her back to the basement, but he thought maybe she should be with Valerie right now.

"Now I am not being nice to you Sam, but I want you in there with her. That's an order, don't question it." Sam slowly nodded and walked Valerie into the bedroom where she could medicate the girl's wounds. Valerie turned and smiled weakly at Gibby.

"Gibby, thank you," Valerie said quietly. Gibby nodded and shut her door, then stood next to it. He was going to make sure nobody tried to get in for a while, at least until Jeremy cooled down.

* * *

It starts now. Well next chapter. The most action packed chapters I've written in a long time. You will love it, and it WILL keep you on the edge of your seat!


	14. Hours from Death

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 14 (Hours From Death)

Jonah and his father decided it was about time to put their plan to action. They knew there had to be guards watching the family, so they couldn't take them all at once. They also knew they couldn't take them from the house, for obvious reasons. It was too risky. They needed to rescue them one at a time. "Thanks for including me in this, son." Michael was grateful that his son let him help, because he didn't want to risk losing his son. Seeing Jonah dying on that bed that night was the worst thing he'd ever seen.

"We're going to do this, Dad. We're going to save Valerie's family. We have to." Michael nodded as Jonah slowly looked down at his notes. They were going over the plan step by step, they were nervous, but they had to do it. This was no time to be getting cold feet. Jonah was sure the others wouldn't kill Valerie's family, just use them as a means to get her to do what they wanted. "Dad, I don't want anything to happen to you. Someone's got to take care of Olivia."

"Don't you worry son, everything is going to be fine." Suddenly Jonah's radio watch began to buzz. He frowned and looked down at it, he must be getting a transmission from someone. His eyebrows rose and his eyes widened, Valerie. It had to be her. He quickly hit the button on his watch and spoke into it.

"Valerie, are you trying to call me?"

"Jonah!" Valerie cried. She was sobbing. Jonah was growing furious, hearing the sobs in her voice. Michael frowned and looked at his son. "Jonah they hurt me. Jeremy…he…he hit me Jonah." Jonah's eyes widened and his muscles became tense. How dare Jeremy lay a finger on Valerie. "He caught me making a phone call…."

"Where are you now?"

"In my bathroom, Sam is with me."

"Sam?"

"H-Hey Jonah," Sam's voice came over the radio. Jonah sighed with relief and Michael's jaw grew firm. Sam was alive, this was great news. Then again, he knew Hector and the others weren't planning on killing her. "I don't like Hector, he scares me. Jeremy's bad too."

"It's okay Sam, we're all trying to figure out how to get you two out of there. Any ideas where you're at?"

"No…nobody knows except Hector."

"Shit. Valerie, I'm going to find your family, I'm going to get them away. Do you hear me? I'm going to take care of them."

"Please help them, mom needs someone," Valerie said with a begging tone. "And, not to scare you or anything, but…" Jonah slowly nodded as Valerie took a deep breath, he often recognized this as a sign she was going to say something that would affect him greatly. "Jonah, I'm pregnant. It's yours." Jonah froze and Michael closed his eyes. He is hands shook as Valerie's voice rang out. "I have to go, Gibby's calling. Don't worry, he's not bad to me, he protects me from Jeremy." The radio clicked off and Jonah continued staring at his watch in pure shock.

"Jonah?" Michael asked cautiously. He wasn't happy about what he heard, but there was no going back. Jonah knew what this meant, this had put fire on his heels for sure. There was still no way to find her, but he wasn't going to stop. Not when he had a child coming. Jonah slowly looked up at his father and stared at him with an expression of pure shock.

"I-I'm a father…I need…" Jonah quickly shook his head and stood up. "We need to get to work, now! We have to save Valerie's family, because she sounded like Jeremy might want to kill them now. I can't let anything happen to them."

"You seem determined." A new look was growing in Jonah's eyes, a look of determination and pure confidence. He wasn't going to back down now, not now. He was a father, he needed to make sure and find out where Valerie was, but first things were first. "What are you going to do about the child?"

"I'm going to do whatever it takes to find Valerie, then I am going to raise that child safely and marry Valerie." Michael raised his eyebrow and smiled, perhaps Jonah was going to take responsibility where it was due. "First though, we need to put our plan in action. No more waiting."

"Good by me."

At the Williams's residence, Vanessa and Vincent worked hard to wake Viola. Vixen was curled up on the couch in fear, bawling her eyes out while Veronica attempted to coax and comfort her. Victoria was watching everybody with fear, what could a twelve year old girl do in all this commotion?

"Victoria, could you grab the ice from the freezer!" Vincent shouted out in a panic. Victoria nodded and ran to the kitchen, returning promptly with a bag of ice. Vincent sighed and placed it in a rag and on Viola's head.

"Valerie's hurt," Vixen cried as Veronica held her close. Veronica looked up pitifully and closed her eyes, she didn't know what to say or how to act. This family was getting torn up. "A bad man is hurting Valerie, a bad man! I don't like him! I don't like him!"

"It's going to be okay Vixen," Veronica said as she kissed her sister's head. They all knew what it meant when Sam's voice had come over the phone. Nobody was looking for Valerie. If they weren't looking for Sam, they weren't looking for anyone else.

"Girls, I know it's hard, but you have to relax!" Vincent said quickly as he continued trying to wake his wife. The fact that she was in a wheelchair didn't make matters any better. Victoria walked over to Vanessa and tugged on her sleeve. Vanessa looked over at her, her hair was a mess and tears were in her eyes.

"Are we in danger?" Victoria asked quietly. This made everyone stop and look over at her in silence. "Look what happened to everyone else who disappeared, and the Brown's had to leave their home so suddenly. That man knows who we are, Valerie got in trouble for talking to us…does this mean we're in danger?"

"We're not going to let anything happen to this family, sweetie," Vanessa replied as she knelt down and placed her hands on Victoria's shoulders. She didn't know what would come of the family, but she did know they had a chance of being thrust into danger now. She didn't want to worry her sisters though. She had to be the strong one now, she had to. Viola moaned and slowly opened her eyes. While she wished the conversation with Valerie had been a dream, she knew it wasn't.

"Viola honey, thank god!" Vincent said as he hugged his wife tightly. Viola sobbed silently as she hugged her husband. She didn't want to lose her baby, Valerie was an angel.

"My baby, she's gone…Do you have to go to work today sweetheart?"

"I can call off."

"You can't afford to."

"I will, someone needs to be here for you. Vanessa has to head to the college, you know that."

"Yeah and I have to drop Vixen off at dance," Vanessa said quietly. "But I can call my teacher-"

"You need to go to school honey," Viola commented. She wasn't going to let anybody shirk their duties for her, they all had responsibilities.

"Mom, you know how these summer classes are, they're-"

"They're still important. You're going to class. I'll stay here with the girls while your dad gets his butt to work." Viola smiled slightly as Vincent and Vanessa exchanged worried glances. They knew they couldn't argue with her, as much as they wished they could, she just didn't let _anyone_ blow their responsibilities. "Now Veronica and Victoria will be fine, I'll be fine." She had to be, no matter how bad the situation looked.

"You always were a strong woman," Vincent said quietly. He had no choice but to comply with her. "I'll head to work, if you're sure you're going to be okay."

"I will be fine."

"Okay girls, you heard your mother. Vixen, get ready for your dance class."

"Yes daddy," Vixen said with a sniff. She knew her dance classes were the most important of anything. She hated to miss a single class. She went to her room and got dressed, then returned to where her mother praised her.

"Sweetheart, you look so beautiful."

"Thank you mommy!" Vixen hugged Viola as she kissed her forehead. Vanessa walked out of her own room and smiled at her little sister.

"Vixen, are you ready to go?" Vixen nodded and followed Vanessa to the car. Viola watched happily as Victoria and Veronica made their way to the kitchen. They needed to figure out what they were going to do now. It was too emotional and too stressful, they were so worried for Valerie. They also had all these irrational fears going on, but were they so irrational after all?

At the villains' base, Jeremy was on the phone. It was time to do the deed. The Williams's family must die. "Okay men, you've been watching them, but now Valerie's crossed the line. It's time for you to take action. Play around with them a bit, play cat and mouse if you want. Don't kill them right away, but by midnight tonight…I. Want. Them. _Dead!"_

"Yes sir!"

"Vincent works at Revel Consulting, located in Bellevue, Washington, as I'm sure you've learned. Vanessa's attending summer classes at Seattle University. Vixen Williams takes her dance classes at Exit Space School of Dance located on 72nd street, Seattle, Washington. Have fun."

Vincent was the last to depart, he gave his wife a kiss and smiled. "I'll be home by three."

"You knock them out today, dear," Viola said with a smile. She was going to make sure her family was strong and stayed strong. Nothing would shake them. "I love you Vincent."

"I love you, Viola." They gave each other a peck on the lips and Viola watched as her husband left the house. She sighed and wheeled herself over to the couch. She hated not being able to walk, it made things so difficult for her. She was so agile before, before the war.

Vincent noticed his phone ringing while he was driving. He didn't usually answer it when he was on the road, but something told him to answer. He was minutes away from his work site, so it wouldn't hurt. He picked up the phone and heard a dark, sinister voice speaking into his phone. "Hello?" Vincent asked with a raised eyebrow. "Who is this?"

"Continue to work and do not act suspiciously, Mr. Williams." Vincent raised his eyebrows suspiciously and swallowed hard. He had a sinking feeling about this. "You and your family are going to die today. Do not act alarmed."

"W-Who is this?"

"You will soon learn. Again, do not be alarmed Mr. Williams. We know where to find you, we know where to find each member of your family. If you act out of turn, we will kill all early on."

"Listen here, you better not do anything to my family!"

"You have no choice. Attend your workplace. If you do not go to work or you leave work early, a member of your immediate family _dies_ sooner. Remember, we _are_ watching your every move."

"Shit…" The man hung up and Vincent slowly pulled into the employee parking lot. He exited his vehicle and looked around, wondering if he was really being watched. He was afraid of being sniped on the spot. He closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath. The worst feeling you could ever have was the feeling that you couldn't do a thing for your family, and this was how he felt.

* * *

Here it is, the start of something really great, action and more action! Enjoy as you are kept upon the edge of your seat!


	15. Saving the Williams, Part 1

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 15 (Saving the Williams Part 1)

Jonah and Michael piled into a large van they rented. Michael's father, Ryan, was joining them since he had been in war several times and would be of great assistance to them. Michael and Ryan had guns, but hoped to not have to use them. Jonah didn't have a gun, since he didn't have a license for one. They knew the police wouldn't do shit for them, they were corrupt, they couldn't rely on them.

"Should I call Mr. Williams?" Michael nodded his head as Ryan investigated a sniper rifle. They hoped to not kill anyone today. The only police officer they contacted was Henry, who informed Della and Amy what was going on. They were given official permission from a police officer to carry out these tasks while Henry deployed officers wherever they could. However it was made sure the officers remained obscure, they wanted nothing to happen. Jonah pulled out his phone and dialed Vincent's number. It was not long before he answered, his voice sounded a bit peeved and somewhat panicked. "Mr. Williams, are you okay?"

"Yeah, do you have any idea what's going on here?" Vincent asked. He tried his hardest not to appear as afraid as he was. He'd already clocked in and started walking to his office, trying not to act suspiciously at all. "I just got a call from someone at an unidentified number saying my family was going to be killed." He choked on the last words. Jonah frowned and looked at Michael, the phone was on speaker. This made their pace hasten, they had to pull this off today. "They said we're going to die today. We just got a call from our daughter earlier…so this is a nightmarish day for us."

"Shit."

"Yeah, they said not to act suspicious either."

"Mr. Williams, we're coming to get you guys out of there. You're going to fine." Vincent chuckled nervously and sat down at his desk, peering out of the window and down at the street. He could see a few officers walking along the road, but that was it.

"Well if you're planning to save us…don't worry about me."

"What?" Michael asked quickly. He didn't want to hear that, he wanted to get his friend out as soon as possible. "Vincent, we are going to get you too!" Vincent closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair. He sighed and heard a beeping sound coming from his briefcase. He slowly opened it and swallowed, it was a bomb set to detonate at eleven o'clock. A message said if any bomb squad appeared or a number of cops were at location of his workplace, it would be assumed he called for help and the bomb would be detonated by remote control. It was funny, eleven o'clock PM was when he got off work.

"No Michael, don't worry about me at all." He closed his briefcase and tucked it nicely under the desk. He needed to figure out what the hell he was going to do about this. "Not until you've saved every other member of my family. Besides, I'll be fine. They won't do anything to me until after I'm done working…I have until eleven."

"What?"

"Save the others first…" Inside the briefcase he had also found a slip of paper that seemed to let him know the order in which his family members would be captured or attacked, or perhaps killed. Vanessa was at the top of the list. "Go to Seattle University first…please…" Michael and Jonah nodded and Vincent hung his phone up. Vincent set the notes and other evidence on the table, being sure not to put his prints on anything. He looked underneath his chair and sighed in relief, thankfully they weren't smart enough to put a motion sensing bomb on his chair.

"Contact Mr. Benson!" Michael said quickly. Ryan was already on it, he had Henry on his phone. He clicked the speakerphone and Henry asked what the status was. "We don't want to be too obvious, but we need to send a squad car for Seattle University. Our first target is Vanessa Williams."

"Okay, I'm on it!" Henry said as he started up his vehicle. Jonah narrowed his eyes and pressed the gas pedal. He hated not being able to get Vincent out, but he had to respect the man's wishes.

"I'll climb to the roof of the building next to that and scope out the enemy?" Ryan asked carefully. Jonah and Michael shook their heads, they didn't know what the enemy would look like. They just needed to be obscure. Chances were any enemy would try and blend in. They reached the University fairly quickly and began searching the campus. They hoped to not be recognized, and were sure they wouldn't be.

Ryan checked the window in the dean's office, Vanessa was inside. He clicked on his radio and spoke into it. "I have information, Miss Williams is with the dean." Ryan looked closely and saw Vanessa's face, it held an expression of terror. Something was wrong. Ryan carefully started cutting a hole in the window and listened. He quickly pulled away and cussed. "Shit, the Dean is one of them! I repeat the Dean is one of them!"

"What?" Henry was on radio as well, so he was hearing every word. He was stunned to hear the dean was with the bad guys. Ryan decided to listen in again and sighed, he cursed his hearing going down.

"I stand corrected, the dean and Vanessa are hostage in his office. There is another female in there, I didn't see her before. She looks like a student…she's saying she rigged the room with booby traps." Jonah frowned as he walked towards the main building, he was closest to the dean.

"Do you know what kind of traps?"

"It looks like…" Ryan listened in and frowned once more. "If the dean moves from his seat, she's triggered an automatic machine to fire an arrow at his head. Motion sensor…If Vanessa tries to move out of her chair, she will be electrocuted by the wires underneath it. The woman has a gun, but she's not using it. Evidently she's also rigged other devices in the room to explode if used, such as the phone. The phone is actually rigged with a powder."

"We get the point, the lady rigged the shit out of the place." And was also using an innocent bystander in this, that was the dean. They needed to save both of them somehow. "The front door?" Jonah stepped in front of the dean's office door and sighed, he knew better than to touch it.

"It's rigged too. Nobody can enter. If they do, that arrow gets fired off."

"I see…how close is the arrow machine to the door, and can the thing holding it be moved?"

"It is right next to the door, and the nozzle appears like it could be moved up and down. It is pointed at a ninety degree angle."

"What position are those electric cords?"

"They are at forty-five degrees." Jonah clicked his tongue and eyed the door. He narrowed his eyes as Henry's voice came on the radio.

"Ryan, I am approaching your location!" Henry reported. Ryan looked over to see Henry running in the distance. He ducked down and carefully made his way to the window. Looking in, he saw a perfectly good, open area for him to shoot. "Okay Jonah, what's the plan of action?"

"When I say now, you shoot that bitch that's got Vanessa and the Dean hostage." Henry nodded as Jonah reached for the door. Thinking fast, he quickly opened the door. "Now!" In an action that was too fast for anybody to react, Jonah shouted and quickly pushed the arrow machine down just as it shot the arrow out. The arrow fired underneath the chair and shot into the electric circuit, shortening out the wires so they couldn't harm anyone. The woman looked over, but couldn't react fast enough for Henry to rise up and fire a shot through the window, hitting her in the chest. Vanessa gasped as she and the Dean looked over. "Stay seated! We need to secure the room!"

"Young man, do you realize what you've done?" The dean asked quietly. "You've saved us!"

"Yeah, the day's not over yet, either." Michael rushed into the room and the two started clearing it of all the traps. When they knew it was safe, they let Vanessa and the Dean out of their chairs. Henry and Ryan entered the room as the woman started groaning in pain.

"Did anyone catch the number of the car that hit me?" She asked painfully. Henry quickly placed the handcuffs on her and narrowed his eyes.

"You are under arrest for conspiracy and attempted murder."

"You have no proof."

"We have enough."

"What's going on?" Vanessa asked as she looked over at Jonah. He motioned for her to follow, he would explain it to her on the way to the car. They just needed her to be obscure, they didn't want anyone to see her still among the living. Perhaps if she was seen traveling with them, it would be a bit dangerous.

"I'll explain in the car. Go to a friend on the campus and walk to our van, you'll see us. This is important that you do that." She nodded and followed his orders. Once they were in the van, she remained seated in the back. Jonah started up the car and began driving, glancing carefully at the clock. It was 4 PM, they had seven hours before Vincent got off work.

"Okay, so what was that all about? That woman said I had to die. What the hell's going on? We get a call from Valerie, and now all of a sudden…"

"Jeremy has probably issued a bounty on your heads." Vanessa frowned, she recognized that name. It had been said while they were talking to Valerie. He was the one that was hurting Valerie. "Just like they were going to do to my family, they're going to kill you guys. What we saw in there was just child-play, there's nothing that says for sure that those cords would have actually killed you. I think they're playing a game with you guys…"

"A _game_, they think this is a _game?_"

"I'm only suggesting that."

"That woman said Vixen was next. We have to hurry to her!" Jonah nodded and started driving towards the dance school Vixen was at. Ryan alerted Henry and he sent Della on the way, since he needed to take the woman down to the station.

"Dad, call Mr. Williams up, we need to let him know that Vanessa is safe." Their plan had been a bit thrown off when Vincent told them about the situation, but that would be fine. They knew they had to get the family out soon anyway. "When this all blows over, we need to take you and your family to Index, there is already a house there that's been rented out for you all."

"We can't just leave Seattle, and Index is an hour away!"

"It will have to do. It's small, it'll be enough to accommodate everybody." Vanessa had no choice but to trust him, especially if their lives were on the line. Nobody else could be counted on right now, and surely Henry was one of the only police officers in Seattle that was really going to give a damn.

"Hello Vincent?" Michael asked when the phone was answered. Vincent grunted as he moved around his office, he was pacing, trying to figure out how he was going to diffuse this bomb. He knew it was a small bomb, it probably would have the radius of his office room, which was not very big at all. "We have Vanessa with us."

"Dad!" Vanessa called out. Vincent chuckled nervously and smiled, he wasn't going to worry her at all. He knew he didn't have long before the big bang. "Dad, are you okay?"

"I'm just fine sweetheart. You let your mother know I love her, all right? I'll see you girls when I get off work."

"Okay, but hang in there Dad. They want to move us to Index!"

"Index, huh? Well that doesn't sound too bad off. We'll make due. The Williams family has seen a lot worse than this! Keep strong Vanessa, don't lose sight of anything!"

"I love you dad."

"I love you too." Vincent hung up abruptly and blew out, puffing his cheeks up. He looked at the clock and groaned. 4:45, time seemed to be going on way too quickly. He looked out his window and narrowed his eyes. Someone was in the window of the building across from him. "So that's where you are, asshole? Maybe I'll take one more look at this bomb…" His door opened and his boss stepped in. He groaned and shook his head, he had forgotten he had a meeting with the boss. Crap.

Jonah and his group pulled up in front of Vixen's school. It looked quiet, very quiet. "Let's take this carefully, we don't know what we're going to find in there," Jonah said as he exited his vehicle. The others nodded and exited, meeting up with Della outside.

"What's the status?" Michael asked as Della and Amy stared at the building.

"Well, they've got Vixen holed up in the auditorium," Della said as they all walked towards the building. "The teacher and other fourteen students are locked up in their classroom and have no idea what's going on."

"You haven't gone in yet?" Jonah growled out while crossing his arms.

"Hold your horses. They aren't letting anybody in unless they're somehow related to one of the students. If anybody enters that doesn't have a connection to this school or a student, then all hell breaks loose. They drop Vixen from the beam at the top of the auditorium and evidently there's a bomb somewhere that's set to go off…they'll set it off early."

"Shit. Well then they won't let any of us in." Della shook her head as Vanessa clenched her fist up. She hated feeling helpless. She was the oldest, it was her _duty_ to take care of her younger siblings. She couldn't do anything for Valerie, she can't even attempt to save her, but here. Oh here, she could do something. There was no way she was letting Vixen die, or be harmed in any way.

"I'll go in," Vanessa said quietly. Jonah stared at her in shock. It was far too risky for her to go in there, she was one of the targets!

"Are you insane?" Jonah asked while narrowing his eyes. "If you go in there now, they could kill you. The whole plan could be compromised!" Vanessa growled and grabbed Della's knife from her. Della frowned as Vanessa started walking to the doors.

"I'll be careful. This is my sister we're talking about. I may have lost one, but I am _not_ losing another." Jonah frowned as Vanessa walked around the building. She found a window leading into the bathroom, and decided to use that. She busted the window open and gained entry. Vanessa reached into her pocket and pulled out the ski mask the woman had. She placed it on her face, in case she was spotted by any of the criminals.

Someone was already in the bathroom, washing up at the sink. She slipped over to her and put the gun at the woman's throat. The woman gasped and narrowed her eyes. "I hear you got this place holed up," Vanessa whispered softly.

"How did you get in? They weren't supposed to let anyone in."

"I know." Vanessa released the woman. "In college, we have a martial arts class. I've learned three methods to knock someone out cold for a very long time. The third method is the most lethal. I won't use it on you. Here's method two." She quickly backhanded the woman's cheek, causing her to turn away, then she swiftly sliced her hand down on the back of the woman's neck, knocking her out instantly.

She then carefully made her way from the bathroom and pressed herself against the wall, peering down a hallway. She saw two guards talking. Past them, was the auditorium. She carefully made her way down, unseen. She instantly performed the method to knock them unconscious and ran for the doors.

When she opened them, she quickly ducked behind a chair. Peering over the chair, she saw two guards standing below Vixen. Vixen was being held up with a rope and was crying as they teased her by moving her up and down like a yo-yo.

"Not my baby sister you don't…" Vanessa narrowed her eyes and ran for the stage. She quickly tossed the knife towards one of the guards and climbed the stage. The knife struck the guard in the armpit as he turned around, he shouted out in pain and fell to the ground while Vanessa quickly performed a karate chop to the second guard's neck. She looked over and glared at the third, frightened guard. Vixen looked over as Vanessa took off her ski mask and smirked.

"Vanessa!" Vixen cried out. "Vanessa help me!"

"I'm on it Lil' Vix." The guard narrowed his eyes and smirked as he tugged the rope. Vanessa cracked her neck and sighed. "I _know_ you're not using my sister to taunt me." She placed her foot on the wounded guard's chest and pressed down as she yanked the knife from him. She quickly ran for the guard and grabbed the rope with one hand and stabbed the man through the hand. He shouted out in pain as Vanessa lifted her hand up and sliced the back of his neck with her hand.

"Go Sissy!" Vanessa smirked and looked up to Vixen, she was proud to have saved her sister. She slowly lowered Vixen to the ground and walked over to untie her. Vixen hugged her around the neck and let her lift her up. "Let's go!"

"One more thing…" Vanessa walked over to the wounded man, who was still screaming in pain while holding his armpit. She grabbed his shirt and lifted him up. "Where's the one that controls that bomb?"

"That was _me_."

"Oh, where's your remote?" She looked to his pocket and narrowed her eyes, she could see what looked like a joystick and a red button. Slowly she reached in and pulled it out. "This it?" He remained silent, so she shook him. "I asked you if this was it! I'm not joking around! You threatened my sister's life and I _know_ you're involved in my other sister's abduction! Now you _will_ answer me or I will injure you in more painful methods."

"Fine! Yes, yes it is! There are two remotes, that one and someone else who isn't at this location."

"You will not tell that person to detonate. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes! Perfectly clear!"

"Good." She placed the remote on the ground and swiftly stomped on it, crushing it. She turned back to Vixen and smiled as the girl looked up to her with pride. She wanted to be just like her sister one day, so strong and proud.

"Let's go Lil' Vix. Jonah's waiting."

"Jonah? They're here!" Vanessa kneeled down and smiled happily, closing her eyes and tilting her head.

"Yes, and so is Mr. Brown. They're going to take us all somewhere safe."

"Okay!"

Jonah waited with anticipation as he paced the grounds. He was becoming nervous and anxious, they _needed_ to know that Vanessa was okay. He didn't want to have to be the one to tell Valerie that her two sisters didn't make it out alive. "If they don't come out in the next thirty seconds, I am going in!"

"No need for that, son," Michael said while placing his hand on Jonah's shoulder. "Look!" Jonah looked up as the front doors opened up. Vanessa was holding Vixen in her arms and smirking as she walked up to the group. "Let me take her." Vanessa nodded and handed Vixen to Michael, who helped her into the van.

"Okay Ms. Benson, you're going to need to go in there and clean up. I only wounded two people, all the others are unconscious. The wounds of the others are minor." Della nodded as she phoned for backup. Everyone else piled into the van and started driving off, proud and glad to have Vixen safe. They looked at the clock and frowned, it was 6:30, only four and a half hours before Vincent was off work. They each had a sinking feeling about this.

* * *

Yeah this all was going to be one chapter, but it was too long to be just one chapter.


	16. Saving the Williams, Part 2

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 16 (Saving the Williams Part 2)

Vincent tapped his foot anxiously while staring at the briefcase he placed next to his desk. His boss was droning on and he needed to figure out how the hell to diffuse this bomb. He was being spied on by a man in the building over, but the window didn't go the length of the wall. He knew he could work on the bomb out of sight. He just needed to somehow get this meeting over with. "So I think if we do this, we could boost productivity and-"

"Sir if I may interrupt," Vincent said politely. The man frowned and rubbed his shaggy beard. "It is 7:00, I get off at 11. I mean no disrespect, but I have to cut this meeting short."

"Why?" Vincent closed his eyes and slowly pointed at the briefcase. His boss frowned as he started to reach for it. Vincent quickly grabbed his wrist and looked away, he was beginning to break out into a sweat. "What are you up to, Mr. Williams?"

"We're being watched, Mr. Selano. Look on my desk." Mr. Selano frowned and eyed the desk. He spotted the note and read it carefully, swallowing hard. "It's set to go off at 11:00 sharp. I need to diffuse it before then. I have absolutely no idea how I'm going to do this."

"We have just roughly four hours then."

"Yes, exactly…I don't know if my family is alive right now, and if they are, I would really like to get home to them tonight in one piece."

"You can't call the cops?"

"No. And be sure to make no sudden movements As I said, we are being watched." Mr. Selano looked past the window and slowly nodded. He could actually help with the eagle watching them from the other building. He was close associates with the manager of the building over. "I believe he has a remote, and if anything goes wrong, he can press it. If he presses it, we die."

"Shit."

"My thoughts exactly, sir." Vincent's phone began to ring and he checked it. "Excuse me, I have to take this call." Mr. Selano nodded as Vincent answered the phone. "Michael, do you have any _good_ news for me?"

"Yes, we got Vixen, she's safe." Vixen smiled and called out for Vincent. He smiled and a tear came to his eye. He was becoming greatly concerned for his own life, but at least it looked like his family was doing well enough.

"I'm happy. This paper says they're going to go after Victoria next. It's almost 7:30, she goes on a daily bike ride. I suspect that's when they're going to grab her." He knew her bike route by heart, because Victoria had always made sure to tell her family where she was. He explained her bike route to them and they nodded, they were determined to find her next.

"We'll find her Mr. Williams," Jonah said in a quiet voice. "Do you trust me with your family?"

"Save my family, and I'll always trust you. I know my daughter is pregnant, Mr. Brown…" Jonah paled as Vincent let out a small sigh. Just before she disappeared, she came to him with the news. He decided to let Valerie tell Jonah and they could come to him. Now, however, with this bomb, things were pressed to a life and death situation. "If you can save my daughters and my wife, I will believe that you can take care of Valerie and that child that she is going to have. I am willing to leave my family's life in your hands Jonah, please…save them." Jonah paused for a minute, his face filling with confidence, strength, and determination.

"I will not fail you, Mr. Williams. Thank you." Vincent hung up and sighed once more, he actually did have the confidence that Jonah and the others would save his family from destruction. He wasn't sure why, exactly, but he had faith in them. He had to, there was nothing else out there for him to have faith in right now. Vincent closed his eyes and sighed.

"Mr. Selano, can we pray?"

"Yeah, that would be a good idea." Vincent and his boss looked at each other and closed their eyes, each taking turn in prayer. This would make it appear they were conversing as well, to throw off the man spying on them.

Jonah followed the bike route given by Vincent and Vixen quickly pointed out Victoria. "There she is!" Vixen said abruptly. Jonah nodded and started to drive up to her, but something was wrong. There was a black car tailing Victoria already.

"Shit someone's already there, we have to stay back for now," Ryan said while narrowing his eyes. Henry pulled up next to them in his car and frowned as Victoria stopped to take a drink from a nearby water fountain. That's when the black car struck. Someone jumped out, grabbed her and threw her into the car.

"I see four people in the car! Let's go!" Michael shouted as the black car sped off. Jonah nodded and slammed on the gas. Henry quickly followed along with them. The people in the car hung out of their windows and started to open fire on them.

"Get down girls," Jonah said while narrowing his eyes angrily. "This is going to be a hell of a bumpy ride."

"Is Victoria going to be saved?" Vixen asked as she cuddled into Vanessa's arms.

"I guarantee it. Dad, Grandpa, get ready!"

"I was born ready!" Ryan shouted as he pointed his gun from the window. "I was a decent marksman in WW2, the Korean war and Vietnam!" Jonah smirked and accelerated a bit more.

"Good, then you take out their tires."

"No problem!"

"I want them to go into the grass! If anything, make them crash into a tree." Ryan nodded as Michael aimed his gun out the window. He would shoot at the people firing upon them. Jonah shouted and ducked as a bullet shot through the windshield. Vixen shouted out and Vanessa clutched her tightly. Ryan grunted as he opened his jacket, revealing the Kevlar vest. "Everyone okay back there?"

"A bit shaken, but just fine! It's time to show these bastards what for!"

"Give them hell Grandpa!" Jonah laughed as Ryan grinned happily and shot out the left rear tire. Ryan fired several shots, finally hitting the man in on the right side of the black car in the shoulder. The man shouted out and went inside the car. Jonah eyed Victoria's fearful face and growled, speeding up the car and rear-ending the black vehicle. "You are not to hurt Valerie's family, not on my watch."

"Vanessa, I'm scared," Vixen said as she covered her ears from the gunfire.

"I know sweetheart, I know," Vanessa said as she kissed the top of Vixen's head. Ryan closed one eye and fired another shot, blowing out the right rear tire of the car.

"They're driving almost on rails now," Ryan said quietly. Henry's car went ahead of them and he attempted a PIT maneuver, but the driver of the car successfully avoided him. "If Henry wouldn't get in my way…"

"No, now's your chance to take out the front tire, Dad!" Michael shouted. Ryan nodded and spotted the black car turning, having avoided the PIT maneuver. He fired three shots, two of which missed and one hit the front left tire. Michael fired another shot and disabled the other man in the backseat of the car. All in all, this chase was taking at least a good hour. It wasn't an easy task, but they were bound determined to not lose Victoria.

"Crap, Jonah look out!" Ryan shouted as he fired several shots at the car. Jonah quickly slammed the brakes and Vanessa cried out. The enemy car was driving right into a large body of water.

"Shit!" Jonah shouted out. Vixen gasped and Vanessa's eyes widened. Henry's car halted next to them as everybody exited the car.

"Oh my god she's underwater!" Vanessa exclaimed. Vixen shrieked and started to cry. Jonah narrowed his eyes and clenched his fists, the last thing he saw before the car submerged was Victoria banging on the windshield. "Victoria!"

"We've not lost yet. I'm not letting them win!" Jonah thought of Valerie and thought of how she'd react to Victoria's death. He thought of Victoria's face going under the water and quickly ran to the lake. Everyone gasped and Michael called out to him. Jonah held his breath and dove into the water, leaving everyone waiting anxiously for him.

He swam down to the car and found that all the windows except the driver's window had been rolled down. This was good, it made it easier for him. He needed to remain calm during this time. He looked up and then swam towards the back window. One man already looked dead, perhaps from blood loss or he just drowned. Jonah grabbed him and pulled him out of the left rear window, then released him. He could see Victoria struggling in a seatbelt, so he swam into the car and took out a knife. Victoria saw him and wrapped her arms around his neck as he cut through the seatbelt and pulled her from the car.

The driver was still alive. He reached around and grabbed Victoria's leg. She started to scream out, but it only released bubbles. Jonah growled and slashed at the driver's arm with his knife. The driver screamed in the water as Victoria's head fell against his back. Jonah placed the knife in his mouth and started swimming towards the surface. _"Hang on Victoria, we're almost up."_

All was silent, everything seemed frozen except for the fish passing by him. His arms were starting to burn, but he had to keep going. It seemed like an eternity, swimming up, but in reality it had not been very long at all. He finally surfaced and his ears exploded with noise all around him. He breathed out and started swimming towards the shore. The car was lost, as it kept sinking.

"They're out!" Vanessa shouted, tears in her eyes. Vixen had her face buried into Vanessa's dress, she was so afraid. She lifted her head and looked back, smiling when she saw Jonah. She frowned as soon as Jonah placed Victoria on the ground.

"What's wrong with her?" Vixen asked, fear rising in her voice. "Why isn't she moving!" Jonah quickly kneeled beside Victoria and held his hand out.

"Stay back." Jonah quickly began performing CPR, giving the needed chest compressions and life breaths. After a minute of doing this, Victoria finally coughed up the water. She slowly sat up and Henry brought over an emergency towel from his car and wrapped it around her. Jonah smiled subtly as he helped the shaky girl to her feet. Vixen and Vanessa breathed a sigh of relief and hurried over to Victoria, who was panting and currently very shocked and scared. Jonah turned to Henry and nodded. "Take her somewhere safe. I guess you know to monitor her and stuff…" Henry nodded as he took Victoria's hand and led her to his car. She would at least stay with him. There was no way they would let her out of their sights.

"Jonah, it's nine, we need to go get mom and Veronica!" Vanessa said quickly. Jonah nodded and everyone piled into the car. They hurried towards the Williams's residence and parked outside the house, there already seemed to be people there.

"I'm not going to let anything happen here either. Let's go guys…" Della and Amy pulled up next to them, along with a few officers they brought along. Currently this house was under risk of being held up by any number of criminals.

Inside the house, Veronica sat fearfully on the couch. She was surrounded by at least five men. These men, along with about three others had been exploring the house. She was scared, very scared, and she had been a little bit snippy with them. One of them actually hit her, so she didn't say anything after that. The five men in the living room decided it would be okay to go through other things.

Two men walked into the kitchen to make some food for themselves while one man walked into the master bedroom. He wanted to try on some of the suits that he found. The two men that remained in the living room stared at Veronica with smirks on their faces, they wondered how much more fear they could give her.

"Have you ever seen what it's like to look down a barrel of a gun?" One man asked quietly. Veronica tried to move her wrists, but they had tied her up. She wanted to know why they hadn't killed her yet and had just been walking around for the past thirty minutes. "It's like this." The man put the gun right in her face and her eyes widened. She froze as he cocked the gun. "Pow…right in between the eyes." He pulled the gun away and Veronica sighed with relief. Her heart was already beating faster than she'd ever felt.

"What do you want? Why are you here?" She asked with a low growl. "Why don't you leave!"

"Well you see sweetie, we're going to kill you. We're going to kill your mother, your father, and your sisters. Oh, and while we're at it, we're gassing this place. Starting with the basement…"

"You assholes! I hope you rot in hell!" The man sighed and smacked her in the head with the butt of his gun. She screamed out as a small trail of blood trickled to her eye. It wasn't anything more than a cut, but damn it hurt.

"Come on Ted, don't torture her too much," The other man said with a sigh. "We're going to kill her soon enough." Suddenly, bullets rang out and the windows shattered. Veronica screamed and bowed her head as Jonah kicked the door open. Michael and Ryan ran in with Della and Amy, all firing into the room. "Shit! I've been hit!" Ted looked over at his partner to see he'd been shot in the upper leg.

Michael ran over to the partner and quickly struck him in the head with the butt of his gun. Ryan fired a gunshot into Ted's back, and he fell to the ground. Veronica gasped and looked up as the two men ran out of the kitchen. Before they could do much of anything, Amy and Della opened fire upon them. They screamed out in pain as they hit the floor. Veronica's body shook as she looked over to where the master bedroom was. The man walked out, dressed in her father's purple pinstriped suit. He had what looked to be a rifle. He dropped quickly opened fire upon the group, but Henry had managed to slip in through the master bedroom's window. The man turned around just in time to be cold-cocked. He moaned and fell to the ground.

"Make sure they're all out!" Jonah shouted as he walked over to Veronica. He frowned and placed his hand under her chin, tilting her head up and looking at the blood and bruise above her eye. He scraped his thumb across the small wound and the blood, and frowned. Anger was rising even more inside him. Someone had drew blood of one of Valerie's sisters. That man must pay. "Who did this to you, Veronica?"

"That man on the floor…Ted…" She looked at the man who was lying face up on the ground. Jonah walked to him and saw he was still conscious.

"Ted, is it?"

"Y-Yeah, what of it?" Ted asked in a slightly mocking and wounded voice. Jonah slowly took his gun and pulled off his mask.

"You drew Veronica's blood. You physically injured one of my woman's sisters. The blood of her sisters was something I hoped not to see…." Jonah lifted the gun into the air and Ted's eyes widened. Jonah narrowed his eyes and swiftly brought justice down upon Ted, slamming the butt of the gun into his head. Ted screamed out as Jonah dropped the gun next to him and stood up. The man held his face and started shaking from the pain, the wound on him was much worse than that inflicted on Veronica. "Where is Mrs. Williams?"

"You fucking bastard! You bashed my face in!"

"I _said_, where is Mrs. Williams! Do not piss me off." As if he wasn't pissed enough.

"She's downstairs, in the basement!"

"You fucking asshole! You put a handicap woman downstairs!" Jonah swiftly kicked Ted and the group ran to the basement door. It was bolted shut. Just then, three men appeared out of nowhere. Jonah turned around and groaned as the men opened fire on him. Fortunately, he was wearing a vest, but it didn't stop the impact from blowing him back against the wall. "Shit…"

"I don't think so," Henry said while striking one of the men. Della and Amy subdued the other two.

"It's too late!" Ted's voice screamed from the living room. "The gas is set to go off any second now!"

"What?" Jonah screamed as he took the rifle from his grandfather and started shooting at the bolted locks. After a few shots, the locks were off. He quickly opened the door and heard a hissing sound, the gas was going. "Mrs. Williams!"

"Jonah? Is that you?" Viola asked weakly. She had tried her hardest to get out of the basement. She had even attempted to climb the stairs. They just turned the gas on and she was starting to feel faint. "What's going on?"

"Come on, you're coming with us," Henry said as he pulled Viola up and carried her in his arms. Della and Amy rushed over to Veronica and untied the girl. Just then, gas jets were starting to go off throughout the house. The group covered the mother and daughter's mouths with whatever cloths on their body they had and quickly exited the house. Henry and Jonah ran to the police car and placed Viola on the car seat. She coughed as Veronica ran over to her mom.

* * *

Next is the final part, a couple close calls in this chapter, some _really close calls_. So far so good, though. I imagine Valerie would be pleased about this. Now, it's down to one family member left.


	17. Race to the Patriarch

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

* * *

A/N:

Chapter 17 (Race for the Patriarch)

Jonah walked over to make sure Viola was okay, she was breathing just fine and looked to be quickly regaining her strength. Vanessa and Vixen made their way over and joined in hugging their mother and their sister. So far so good, everyone was safe. All that was left was Vincent, and he was still at work. Jonah looked over as the officers pulled out a few of the men that were inside, they still hadn't brought Ted out, however.

"Thank you for what you've done, Jonah," Viola said with a subtle smile. Jonah smiled at her and gave her a hug. Veronica looked over just in time for Della to start swabbing her head with a cotton swap and alcohol. She closed her eyes and winced as the alcohol and peroxide burned the scratch above her eye. The final touch was the Band-Aid. If Valerie were there, she'd probably tease Veronica about now looking like a tomboy. "My girls are all safe, but Valerie…" She shook her head and opened her eyes, looking at each of her daughters. Victoria was still seated in Henry's car, trying to adjust to what had been going on. "What's important is that we're all safe and we can wait for Valerie to come back, together."

"Yeah, we can do that Mom," Vanessa said quietly as she held her mother's hand. Jonah folded his arms over and looked at the doorway, frowning when he saw Ted prop himself against the door frame. Vanessa eyed the man and growled, narrowing her eyes. "You think you can scare us? Well you can't! We're a strong family, we don't scare easily!" Ted smirked and reached into his pocket.

"Is that so?" Ted responded sinisterly. Jonah glared at the man, debating if he ought to charge him or not. "Well you saved the Matriarch of the family, that's one strong pillar that remains in place. You saved the oldest sister, the second pillar's in place, but we have the third pillar…" He knew he was referring to Valerie. All the villains believed the strength of the family rested in the two oldest sisters and the parents, they were what kept the family together. "Now what happens when the final pillar is toppled? You have an hour to save Papa Williams before the bomb detonates."

"What!" Everyone pales and Jonah quickly clenched his fists. That's why Vincent told him not to worry about him, he must have known he had a bomb planted on him. It must have been hinted to Vanessa, but she didn't catch it. Jonah started to hurry towards the man, but he froze when he saw Ted pull a lighter from his pocket.

"Let's see what happens when we shake the very foundation." Ted opened the lid of the lighter and closed his eyes, the fear in him was rising to unforeseen heights, but he had no choice now. In his mind, he knew he had to die, or be sent to death row. He opened his eyes and clicked the lighter on, then tossed it into the gaseous fumes. Everyone screamed in panic and terror the house lit up and Ted fell back into the explosion. Jonah yelled out and covered the family with his body, making sure if the explosion reached them, it wouldn't harm them. He lifted his head up as Amy started calling the fire department. Henry hurried over to the group as Michael and Ryan stared in shock at the house.

"You need to hurry to where Mr. Williams's work is. I'll have cops on the way, but I have enough work on my hands at this sight alone!" Jonah nodded and motioned for his father and grandfather to follow him. Viola called out to him and he stopped, holding his hand on the side of the car.

"I believe in you Jonah," Viola said quietly as her daughters knelt and surrounded her, weeping silent tears. "With the police, you saved us all from danger, now go save my husband."

"Yes ma'am." Jonah swung into the driver's seat and started up the car. They had to get there and fast, before that bomb went off. It would be a good twenty minute drive, but they could make it.

In the meanwhile, Victor and Mr. Selano were watching from the window, the man spying on them. Mr. Selano had contacted the employees of the building over, and they were working on carefully subduing the spy. He narrowed his eyes and watched in silence as the man vanished from the window. Moments later, he had been taken down. "I think we can work on the bomb now, Vincent."

"Yeah, we should get started on that." Vincent grabbed his briefcase and placed it on the desk. He opened the briefcase and revealed the bomb, ticking away the minutes. They were in serious hell if they couldn't diffuse it now. "Okay, so any ideas? We could call the bomb squad _now_, but I don't know if we're not still under watch by someone else." Mr. Selano rubbed his chin and pushed Vincent aside. "Sir?"

"In the Vietnam war, I worked to diffuse bombs. I think I can get this."

"No offense, but it would have been nice to know that earlier."

"I'm sure." Mr. Selano narrowed his eyes and carefully began working at the bomb. There was a code to diffusing it, so he just needed to figure out the system. He found a screwdriver next to the bomb and started to remove the number pad. There should be wires beneath it, and those wires would be a great help for him.

Victor watched as his boss worked to diffuse the bomb. He leaned against the wall and frowned, he had been starting to notice some things were a bit off. He looked out the window and started walking about his office. It was a good twenty minutes before Mr. Selano had finally disarmed the volatile device.

"Well nothing to worry about now, Vincent." He closed the briefcase and slowly rose from the desk. Vincent nodded and walked over as Mr. Selano walked to the door, pulling out his cell phone. It had started ringing, so he needed to answer it. Vincent narrowed his eyes and leaned against his desk, folding his arms over.

He investigated his boss with his eyes and frowned, how could he not see it before? Perhaps with all the stress of the bomb, he just had overlooked the details. This man was not Mr. Selano! He frowned as the man closed his phone up and put it in his suit pocket, then carefully locked the door. He turned to face Vincent and smiled slightly.

"Well, it looks like we can go home now."

"You unlock that door sir, then we can leave. Before we do, though…would you mind telling me what your real name is and where Mr. Selano is?" The man chuckled and closed his eyes, so Vincent finally saw through his ruse. He had to hand it to the man, he was an intelligent man.

"Gladly…My real name is Kane, and your boss is currently indisposed right now. Sorry, he had to miss his meeting." Vincent narrowed his eyes as Kane reached into his suit and slowly pulled the gun from his jacket. "I'm sorry I didn't disarm the bomb sooner, but you see…we had to play a little game of terror with you and your family. Now, the game's ended, and it's time for you to die."

"Answer me this. Are you one of the people involved in the abduction of Sam Puckett, and…" Vincent took a slow, steady step forward and a growl escaped his throat. "And my daughter, Valerie…"

"Involved? No. Work for the guy who did take the two girls and beats the living shit out them? Yes." Vincent's rage shot up and he blindly charged for the man.

"I'll kill you before you step foot out of this office! I don't give a damn about what you do to me, but you will leave my family alone!" He grabbed Kane's wrist and started struggling with the gun, while delivering several blows to the man's body.

Outside the building, Jonah parked and started to stare up the large company. He frowned as his phone began to ring, it was Henry calling him. When he answered, he got earth shattering news. "Jonah, we just got a call in from the neighboring employees. They said that a suspicious sounding man claiming to be Vincent's boss was in the room with him and that they were told to subdue someone who had the remote to a bomb. Look into this, I think Vincent may be in greater danger than just that bomb."

"Okay, I got that." Someone else was in that office, so how could he fix this. He rubbed his chin and narrowed his eyes, then looked over at Ryan. "Grandpa, take that sniper and get to the top of that building. Aim carefully and get ready to fire on my call." Ryan nodded and grabbed the sniper from the car as Jonah quickly ran into the building. Michael ran in after him, he had to make sure to stay with his son. They ran into the elevator and rode it up to the fifth floor.

"Dad, we know what office he's in, right?"

"Yeah, follow me." Michael had visited his friend during work hours before, so he knew the layout of the building pretty well. The two ran towards Vincent's door and started trying to open it, but found the door was locked.

"Why do they always think to lock the damn door?"

"I don't know, but we need to get in there." They could hear sounds of a fight inside. Jonah smiled with pride, the final 'pillar' of the Williams family and he wasn't going down without a fight. How appropriate. Valerie would probably love to know that her father was so protective of his family.

Inside, Kane finally managed to gain the upper hand. He kicked Vincent against the desk and wiped the blood from his own mouth. He narrowed his eyes and stepped towards Vincent, wiping off his suit. "You smudged my suit, Mr. Williams."

"You and your suit can burn in hell for all I care." Vincent wiped his mouth as Kane chuckled and pointed the gun above him. He breathed in and his chest heaved out, he went all out. He wasn't down yet, he wouldn't go down yet. "Just answer me this, when will my girls see their sister again? My wife's got a poor heart, but she's the foundation of this family…does all she can…When will she see her baby again?"

"I'm going to make damn sure the answer to your question is _never_." Suddenly the door swung open and Kane quickly spun around. Jonah sighed frustratingly and carefully stepped inside.

"Why must you lock the doors?" Jonah asked with narrow eyes. "Do you know how much trouble that is for us? We had to go and find a damn janitor who had a key! Do you _know_ how many keys are on a janitor's ring? Do you _know?_ I don't think you have any _idea_ how many keys there are!" Vincent chuckled nervously and Kane smirked. What was this guy doing here, barging into the office and going on about keys. Jonah pulled his knife out and stared at the man, he was done being obsessed about the lock, now he needed to get his, hopefully, future father-in-law out of danger. "I hope you know I'm not letting you do anything more to that man."

"I hope you know you're sticking your nose where it doesn't belong." Jonah shrugged as Kane lifted his arm from the side and pointed the pistol at Jonah. "Goodbye, dumbass. Just another wannabe hero…just like that Benson shit who keeps snooping around the former homes of our bosses."

"Freddie? What does he have to do with all this?"

"Trying to find his _girlfriend_, that's what…We're getting annoyed, but anytime we try to take him out, he just proves to be further trouble." They've tried shooting him, they've tried breaking into his home, but who knew trying to take out the son of two cops was a living hell. Even when those cops were _divorced_. Jonah smirked with pride and crossed his arms.

"Hey, you wouldn't believe what people these days would do for love. I guess he's trying to track down where Hector and his lackeys have gone to."

"Yeah we know, Boss man's getting irritated." Hector may have to keep a close eye on Freddie, since it appeared to him, that Freddie was a much greater threat than anyone else. "A threat that great hasn't been seen since…" Jonah raised his eyebrow and smirked dangerously.

"Since _me_? You're worried about Freddie, but I just helped to take out your men stationed around the rest of the Williams family. Freddie and I _both_ are threats to you, don't overlook either one of us. Believe me, the second you do that…" Jonah had already clicked his radio on previously, so this was basically a show to him. Don't make too much of a mess, grandpa. "Overlook one of us and pay too much attention to one, the other comes out of the shadows…and you die." Kane raised his eyebrow and on a suspicion, looked out the window. There in the same window of the building the spy had been in, rested a sniper. In what seemed almost instantaneous with Jonah's words, a bullet flew from the sniper and crashed into the window.

"Shit." Jonah closed his eyes as blood spattered everywhere. He then hurried over to Vincent and helped the man to his feet, draping his arm around his shoulders.

"Are you okay, Mr. Williams?"

"Yeah, except I've been shot…" Jonah looked down to where Vincent held his side, it was bleeding out immensely. Vincent was starting to pale a little, he could go into shock at any given minute.

"Damn it, let's get you out of here!"

"How are my girls? Are they safe?"

"Everyone is safe, and waiting on you to get off work." Vincent smiled and nodded his head. He was thankful for that, it seemed Jonah really came through.

"So, Index?"

"Yeah, think you can handle an hour drive to work?"

"I might need a new job…"

Soon, they made it to ground level with the paramedics, who had met up with them in the elevator. Jonah was met with the rest of Valerie's family as they watched Vincent be pulled into the ambulance. "Is Daddy going to be okay?" Vixen asked as she clutched Vanessa's pants. Veronica and Victoria watched with wide eyes as the paramedics spoke with the police officers. They had to scope out the building and make sure nobody else was harmed. Of course, they knew they had a big mess to scrape off the walls, floor, and ceiling of Vincent's office.

"He's going to be just fine," Vanessa said surely. Of course he would be okay, he was a strong man. They all had to be strong now, every last one of them. With Valerie gone, and the events of the day, fear was on the rise. "Stay strong."

"I almost drowned," Victoria said with realization and fear. She hated water now. She used to love swimming in the city pool, but now just the sight of water scared her.

"They saved our house," Viola said as she moved over to Jonah. He smiled and nodded his head, they had some really good firefighters in Seattle. "A lot of things were lost, but the house is still in good shape." Of the people remaining in that house, Ted had been the most charred from the fire. It was almost a satisfying feeling to everybody. "We can probably move whatever's left to that house in Index."

"I'll gladly help you all to move, if you want," Jonah suggested. He knew things were going to become very busy very quickly for him. He now needed to help take care of that family and be sure to protect them, while doing the same for his own family.

"That would be great Jonah." At least he had good family values. He watched the ambulance drive away and slowly looked up into the sky. It was beginning to rain, but he couldn't feel it. He usually loved the rain. He was happy to have had a hand in saving the family, but he didn't feel they were all completely rescued. In truth, there was really one left.

_"Stay strong Valerie. I'm going to get you out of there somehow, no matter how long it takes. If it costs me my life, I will get you out of there." _

* * *

Well I'm going to guess Jonah's on pretty good terms with Valerie's family right about now. So everyone's safe, they will be moving to Index, WA. It's a real town, look it up, it's a _very small_ town in the mountains, but it's quaint and enough. Enjoy the next chapter which either deals with Freddie or deals with Sam...Oh wait I think it's the report to Nevel..


	18. Still Human

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 18 (Still Human)

Nevel had been trying to contact Kane for some time now to see what the status of Valerie's family was, Jeremy had a headache and had actually gone to sleep. It was one in the morning and Kane still hadn't contacted them, so something was wrong and he knew it. "Come on Kane, give us a call," Nevel said quietly as he looked to the house phone. There were several phones placed throughout living room, they were the only ones anybody was permitted to use. Nevel didn't get to use his cell, neither did Gibby, and Jeremy basically destroyed Valerie's.

Nevel wasn't sure if he liked how wild Jeremy became, but at the same time, it felt pretty good to have the power and control. It had already gone to Jeremy's head, and it was starting to get to him. Gibby seemed more controlled, though, making sure the only person he tortured was Sam. Sam was getting what she deserved, Nevel felt it was right. As for Valerie, Jeremy was just trying to get her to realize that any little thing could ruin the plan. They needed to be careful. That was all.

Nevel had not planned on the beating he and Jeremy received from Hector, nor did he like how much of a 'pet' Valerie was becoming. She need to get her head examined or something and start figuring out what field she was playing on. Gibby wasn't letting Jeremy anywhere near her, especially not after the beating he'd given to her. Nevel frowned and gingerly touched the wounds on his face, wincing as the pain of the slightest touch shot through him. Nobody seemed to care about his wounds.

Of course Jeremy had it worse, Hector really beat the shit out of him. Where Nevel just got beaten with fists, Jeremy got anything Hector could grab. It was like watching one of those fake pro wrestling matches, and they couldn't escape. If they were trying to make Sam afraid of them, Hector really made them fear him. He was cruel, he was cold, and he was the vilest of everyone in that mansion. At least that's what Nevel thought. But when it came to Jeremy, it was hard to discern who really was worse. They were both just equally as bad, it seemed.

Finally after what seemed like an eternity, Nevel had finally received a phone call. Only, it was not Kane, who was one of their highest henchmen. "Hello?"

"Mr. Papperman, is that you, sir?"

"Yes. Do you have any news on Valerie's family?" He saw Jeremy's point. Why should Valerie have a family to go home to? They didn't, not anymore. No, Hector killed their families. Surely this would probably be forbidden by Hector and Victor, but Valerie _deserved_ this. He glanced to the side to see Valerie peering out into the living room.

"Bad news, we've suffered heavy losses."

"Er…what?" Valerie walked through the living room and passed Nevel. He closed his eyes and sighed as she made her way into the kitchen. "What do you mean you've suffered heavy losses?"

"I mean to say, Kane and Ted both failed their stations." His blood suddenly ran very cold. How could they _fail_? They were some of the _best_, and they failed? No that couldn't be right, he had to have heard incorrectly. "They're dead, sir."

"Dead! You expect me to believe they _died?_ What? That family can't be that good!"

"Well it wasn't exactly them, sir…"

"Okay, whatever, just…_tell me_ at least somebody is dead in that goddamn family."

"Well the twelve year old almost died." Nevel frowned and narrowed his gaze. Almost wasn't enough for him. "The four men that grabbed her drove into a lake, they all drowned, but she got out somehow."

"How!"

"We're not entirely sure just yet. We're still trying to regain our own composure." They didn't know what had gone wrong, all they knew was somehow there was a police officer at every station. Someone had to have known what was going on. "At least nobody at the dance studio died, and the woman who attempted to take Vanessa's life is in prison. Ted blew up in a fire…that he set…"

"You're not serious?" Nevel started to pale and his body began to shake. There had to be something wrong. What were they overlooking? He knew there were reports that Freddie was snooping around and had actually taken a few of their agents out, but could he have prevented the Williams family from dying? Did he save them? "What about Kane?"

"Well…I think the cops just got done scraping his brains from the walls of Mr. Williams's office." Nevel gagged and placed his hand on his stomach. Oh god he felt sick. "Somebody sniped him, sir. I regret to say, I think he came the closest to nearly killing one of the family members. I think someone tipped somebody off."

"And you mean to tell me you don't know _who_ is responsible?"

"Well, we heard on Kane's radio…somebody mentioned the name 'Benson' and we did see Officer Benson around. Maybe Freddie and his dad got involved."

"Shit! That much damage?" His voice was raised to high levels, possibly disturbing everyone in the house. Valerie poked her head out from the kitchen and looked at Nevel with concern.

"Well now there was a pretty cryptic looking message that came from the Williams Residence. A note that had been attached to Ted's body after he died…it did mention there to be two forces 'vying' for the girls' safety. So if not Freddie, then, could it be Jonah?"

"What? No! He's dead! What? Could his _ghost_ have saved the family?" Valerie smiled and quickly swirled back into the kitchen, leaning against the wall and cupping her hands over her heart. Jonah had saved her family, it had to be him. Nevel actually thought Jonah died that night, they weren't sure exactly. Gibby didn't act like he thought Jonah was dead, and Jeremy never talked much about him. Whenever his name was mentioned, Jeremy went ballistic and nearly crushed whatever was next to him.

"I don't know, but all I know is the family is alive and they're somewhere else. We don't know where. You know, also on that note were the words 'this family is protected.'" Nevel felt another chill run through his body, he was sure to be freezing at this rate. Those were the same words found in the Brown residence.

"Great, so someone knew our plans."

"Not necessarily. Mr. Williams had a few phone calls during the duration. Kane reported that. It was possible after we delivered the first call, that Vincent told whoever called next what was going on." Nevel was gripping the phone cord tightly in his hand and little beads of sweat were beginning to form at his brow. He was becoming very nervous, and was also deeply saddened. He liked Kane, and actually looked up to the man. Why was it everyone he liked seemed to be dying around him? His entire world was just crashing before him. It wasn't fair. "Mr. Papperman, sir? Are you okay?"

"Yeah I'm fine…" Nevel hung up the phone and sighed as he glanced over to the basement door. In there was Samantha Puckett, the sidekick of his arch rival. Now he couldn't have _any_ webshow, though. Hell none of them could even get online. Was iCarly still going? He wouldn't know. He slowly removed the picture he had of his mother and sighed, she was dead now, and this was the last memory of her that he had. Nobody had been allowed to return to their homes, so they had to get everything their own way. Thank god they managed to find clothing with the allowance Hector was giving them.

"It sounds like something bad happened there," Valerie said as she walked over to Nevel. He shrugged and looked at her. God he envied her, he hated her so much, almost as much as he hated Sam. Why the hell did Gibby stick up for her? It hurt, damn it! It fucking hurt. "Nevel, you look like you just lost an idol or something."

"A man I looked up to in these last few weeks died…horribly…" Valerie frowned and bowed her head. Good or bad, she didn't care, everybody was still human in one way or another. Some became inhuman, like Jeremy and Hector, but still there was something inside even them that could show they were still human. That could be pain, love, joy, whatever pure emotion that came from the heart. She wanted to be able to help bring this human side out of them, as unlikely as it seemed.

"I'm sorry Nevel, I really am." She knew the man that died was trying to kill her family, but she still was sorry to Nevel that it had to be his idol. Nevel narrowed his eyes and stared at her coldly.

"I don't think you get that he was trying to kill your dad." Valerie closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, trying to forget that her family could have been murdered. She slowly exhaled and looked calmly at Nevel.

"I realize that. It's just the way I am, I see the human in everyone…the heart. I know you're hurting, just like I know even Jeremy is hurting. No matter what you say or do to me, I will always believe that there _has_ to be something good inside. You looked up to that man, Nevel. It's okay to be hurt, it's okay to feel pain, but it's not okay to let it overtake your world. It's also okay to let other people comfort you…" Nevel blinked and closed his eyes, chuckling softly.

"I think I see why Jonah liked you. Just don't go giving us a sweet tooth."

"Well I'm making cupcakes tomorrow for desert." She smiled as Nevel laughed. She was immensely proud to have made him laugh. She knew he would still continue to hurt her, there was nothing she could do about that, but maybe if she could make him feel better, she could get through to him. If not, they may all become robots over time.

"That's fine, maybe I'll eat some and get a sweet tooth."

"Do you think Hector would…" Nevel frowned and slowly shook his eyes, knowing well what Valerie was thinking. He wondered why she really gave a damn, but then almost everyone could see she didn't belong. However, if she made herself useful, they wouldn't have to dispose of her.

"Sam's not allowed to have really good potions of food. Only meager samples…no cupcakes for her." Valerie nodded and looked towards the ground. Nevel sighed and folded his arms over his chest. "Hey, you like to cook, right?"

"Yeah…"

"Well then if you're a good enough cook and can keep the meals coming. You'll make everyone here happy. Got that? You keep making people like Jeremy or Hector happy, then the more use we have for you." Valerie's eyes widened and she quickly nodded, understanding well what this meant. She smiled and hurried to the kitchen, she loved to cook. She would make sure to do her best to stay on good terms with them so maybe they wouldn't hurt her. But that by no means meant she was going to hurt Sam, she just couldn't see the point in hurting the girl. Nevel sighed and slowly shook his head, then turned around to head for his bedroom. _"Jeremy's going to be pissed when he learns that Valerie's family is alive. It might also mean he'll take it out on her…but with Gibby around, she's got immunity." _

* * *

Well so Nevel got the call and Valerie sees a bit into him.


	19. Dinner

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 19 (Dinner)

The next day, Valerie was making sirloin steaks for everybody. It was a vote between steaks and spaghetti, but the boys being the guys they were, voted for spaghetti. Jeremy was expecting his to end up being overcooked, for obvious reasons, but Valerie took great pride in her cooking skills. She wouldn't overcook anything on purpose, no matter how bad someone was to her. Gibby wanted his steak done medium well, Jeremy wanted it well done, Nevel wanted it medium, and Hector wanted his steak Rare.

Now cooking a steak well done was a challenge, it has to be cooked slowly on low heat or the risk is run of it basically being nothing but shoe leather. Valerie was going to season these steaks, make them juicy, and cook them in with barbeque. She wanted this to be perfect. She wasn't trying to suck up to them, she didn't care about that. She always felt so at peace whenever she cooked something, it was like an escape to her. Whenever she had been stressed, whenever she had been afraid, no matter what feeling she felt, she cooked and it always took her away long enough to feel great.

The men sat around the table and watched as Valerie cooked the food. They took notice of how focused she seemed to be on the steaks, like nothing could possibly tear her away from the food or distract her. She was so into her work, that it became her. They were almost afraid to say anything to her, fearing the outcome of her losing her focus on that food. Cooking was just a way of life to her. When she wasn't working on the steaks, she was working on the cupcake mix.

"I've been really eager to try her cooking," Hector said as he leaned back in his chair, resting his arm on the table and tapping it gently. "It all smells really good, and she can really multitask." Steaks, cupcakes, loaded mashed potatoes, and green beans was the menu today. Valerie quickly ran from the batter of the cupcakes and pulled out a big plate. She grabbed the melted cheese and the salsa from the stove and began pouring it into two small bowls, which she sat in the center of the plate. She set the pots back on the stove and carefully placed a hefty amount of warm tortilla chips around the bowls. "Hmm, the appetizer's ready."

"Yeah, looks tasty," Jeremy said as Valerie brought the plate to the table. She smiled and quickly hurried back to the cooking area. Everyone grabbed a chip and dipped it in either sauce of their choice, then bit in. Instantly, pleasure shot through them, and it was just the appetizer! "Damn!"

"That is some _good __salsa!"_ Nevel said as he licked his lips. It was hot, medium spicy, and very well stirred. Valerie had put just a hint of Tabasco in it. She looked over and beamed with pride. They hadn't even had the main course yet and already they were falling in love with the food. "Hey Hector, you haven't tried the salsa yet!"

"No, but try the cheese, it's out of this world!" Hector commented. Everybody took another chip and dipped it in the sauce they had yet to try. They loved it. Valerie smirked and cracked her knuckles as she moved to the steaks, continuing to take great care. Hector's would be one of the last to be cooked, since his would be rare, not a lot of cooking would have to go into that. She had to time them just right enough to serve them all at the same time.

After making sure the steaks were doing well, she moved to the mashed potatoes and began fluffing them. She wanted to make them creamy. They were already pretty creamy and had a _perfect_ buttery swirl. She'd mixed in a good amount of bacon bits and chives. This was basically a baked potato without the skin. She then hurried to the cupcake mix and poured the batter into the cupcake pan.

Hector laughed and applauded her performance, everyone really enjoyed seeing how into it she was and how much she enjoyed it. "It really is getting hot in that kitchen."

"Yeah I agree," Jeremy said while nodding his approval. Gibby muttered and glanced to the side. Sure they hadn't meant how it sounded to him, but he couldn't help what he thought.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Gibby asked the two. Hector and Jeremy looked over at Gibby with frowns on their faces, they were not sure if they needed to feel offended or not. Hector knew better than to protest, because to them, he really was that way. However he wasn't thinking like that with Valerie. Jeremy, nobody really knew what he thought. "Sorry, that was a bit uncalled for."

"Yeah let's not think about all that crap right now," Nevel said calmly. He was actually more interested in eating than anything else. It wasn't long before all the steaks were ready and Valerie began serving everyone. Nevel licked his lips as his plate was placed in front of him. "It looks so good!" He hadn't had a home-cooked meal in such a long time. "Thank you, thank you!"

"Gladly," Valerie said as she set the plates in front of everyone else. She then finally served herself, believing the chef serves last. Her steak was cooked medium well. "Well dig in, the cook doesn't eat until everyone else has." Jeremy looked at his big, juicy steak and licked his chops. He chuckled nervously and looked over at Valerie.

"Now you didn't poison it did you?" He asked jokingly. The others laughed and Valerie shook her head. She would never treat food in such a poor manner.

"Of course not, food is meant to be prepared and eaten, not tainted with poison and other foul things." She straightened her posture and started cutting her meat. Gibby chuckled at this and took a bite of his steak, it was delicious.

"Ooh, you better not insult the lady who cooks your food, Jeremy," Gibby said with a laugh. "By the way Valerie, this steak is _out of this world_."

"Thank you Gibby. I appreciate the compliment. How is it for everyone else?" They knew how easy it could be for her to taint their food, and for someone they weren't sure about, they put a lot of trust in her handling her food. However they were confident she wouldn't do anything bad, especially considering she herself wasn't a bad woman. Even they could see that. She acted like she wouldn't be able to hurt a fly. Nevel decided to strike the mashed potatoes first. They were delicious. The creamy, buttery texture was the first to hit his taste buds. God he loved it.

"Oh shit, I feel like I've died and gone to heaven," Nevel said while leaning back in his chair and sighing contently. Valerie smiled happily and looked over at Hector, who was trying his steak. He nodded his approval and looked over at her with a slight wink.

"It's good."

"Thank you, Hector."

"You should really consider it as a career."

"I wanted to be a chef." Hector nodded and Jeremy stared quietly at his plate, unsure of which to tackle first. He decided upon the steak. It was the perfect quality, perfect tenderness for him. It was not at all overcooked or undercooked.

"Jesus your cooking is perfect!" Jeremy said with tears in his eyes. He hadn't tasted food so good since his mother, who died many years ago. "Thank you very much for cooking this."

"I appreciate that, Jeremy." Valerie smiled and began to eat her steak. It was not long before they were done with the food. Valerie actually was the slowest to eat, since she felt guilty about having a big meal while Sam was stuck in the basement, unable to eat anything. She knew if she objected, she'd be chided, so out of fear, she said nothing at all. "The cupcakes are done." Valerie rose from the table and hurried to the oven, where she pulled out the cupcakes. Now she just needed to put the frosting, and other décor on them.

"Hector, do you mind if I ask a personal question?" Hector looked over as Jeremy placed his silverware on the plate and carried it over to the sink. He then moved back to the table and sat down, taking a deck of cards from his pocket and removing the cards from a container.

"Ask whatever you want," Hector said quietly.

"Why do you do what you do?" He raised his eyebrow curiously as Jeremy shuffled the cards. The others took their plates to the sink and returned to the table. "Outside, you don't seem like the type to commit, you know, rape…" Hector closed his eyes and sighed, this was a very tender subject for him. Sometimes it was hard to control his urges, and yes he knew that he wasn't the victim in any way, he was the criminal. "Something triggers you, doesn't it?"

"I like the feeling of being in control." It was what most sex offenders did their crimes for, control. The crime in itself was not a crime of lust so much as it was a crime of power. They wanted to be strong, to be powerful, to be in control. "To make those weaker obedient, that is the biggest thing when it comes to sex offenders." Gibby frowned and eyed Jeremy closely, he wondered just how far off _he_ was from using that to commit a crime. "It doesn't always mean it's right, but once you start…it really is hard not to continue. It's easier for me, but I try to avoid alcohol because that is what does me in. If I've had anything to drink…"

"The day you kidnapped Sam…did you have something to drink?"

"Yes. I had to work up the courage to do it, and I did it." Nevel looked away and Gibby just stared down as Jeremy dealt the cards. "It's really similar to someone who abuses people. It is a crime of control, power, fear…it is why you were beating on Valerie the other day…"

"I lost it, okay. I do that lately." He felt like something was wrong with him, but at the same time, he did enjoy the rush he got from having that control over her. Gibby wasn't going to let him touch Valerie anymore, that was obvious enough. Valerie placed her cupcakes on the plate and walked over to the table, ignoring the conversation the men were having. The cupcakes were chocolate. Some of the cupcakes had brown frosting, some pink and some yellow. They were also covered with an array of sprinkles.

"Holy crap I'm going to get a sweet tooth," Nevel said as he took a cupcake. He smiled at Valerie, referencing their earlier joke. She smiled back as the other guys took their cupcakes. Jeremy did take note that during this entire time, Valerie had not one time glanced his way. Nevel took a bite of the cupcake and sighed dreamily. "Thank _god_ I'm not diabetic, or else I'd be in trouble."

"Yeah, if she keeps feeding us these sweet treats, we're bound to die from sugar highs." Jeremy smiled as the others shared a chuckle. "Okay so here's something to talk about. What do you think your worst sin is?"

"Gluttony," Valerie said with a small smile. She wasn't sure about that, since she didn't eat very much. Gibby shook his head with doubt and smirked slightly.

"You?" Gibby asked as he took a bite of his cupcake. "I don't believe _glutton_ would define you. Yet out of the seven deadly sins, you have…Pride, Wrath, Gluttony, Lust, Envy, Greed, and Sloth. I can't say any of them fit you."

"Well I'm sure one does…" Maybe lust, since whenever she was with Jonah she always ended up wanting to feel him. He was the same. Her face started to grow red and Gibby smirked slightly, guessing she must be thinking about someone.

"Got someone on your mind there, Valerie?"

"No!"

"You can tell the truth. As far as me, I'm going to say wrath." Jeremy and Nevel quickly nodded their heads while Valerie chuckled very lightly. Gibby was definitely wrathful. If anyone pissed him off, he was quick to throw a punch.

"I'm envy," Nevel said as he lifted his hand up. "I'm guilty of being jealous of a lot of people, mainly the iCarly crew." Jeremy nodded and took another bite of his cupcake. He swallowed it and hummed to himself.

"I'd have to say either Greed or Envy, probably both," Jeremy said quietly. True, it was a bad combination. He wanted what he wanted, and that was power, dominance, everything. He also was very jealous of the people who had it better than he did. "What about you, Hector?"

"I suffer from pride," Hector replied quietly as he picked up his cards. They were going to play a few rounds of poker, as there really wasn't much to do. "Let's get this game started, all right?"

"One more thing," Valerie said while looking up. She was very afraid to ask this, but it was nagging her greatly. "I know…Sam's not supposed to have big meals and all…" The boys frowned and looked to her, not liking where this was going. "But can't she at least have like…half of what we have on our plates or something? I mean hell, maybe even a sandwich would suffice, if anything. I don't feel right eating all this when she gets nothing."

"She gets nothing, and that's how it is to remain," Hector said in a quiet voice. Sam could survive on ample portions of meals, she didn't need everything. "For example, today…she gets a steak about one third the size of the ones we had, a spoonful or two of mashed potatoes and a small helping of green beans. Does that seem sufficient enough for you?" It wasn't a lot, but at least it was _something_. Valerie would have to make do with that. She smiled politely and nodded her head.

"Yes, and thank you so much. I just feel guilty for not letting her eat…"

"You need to learn to harden yourself," Jeremy said honestly as he eyed his cards carefully. "If you don't, you're going to get eaten…" Valerie swallowed and fearfully nodded her head. She didn't want to be hurt, she really didn't. Gibby groaned and moved his eyes over to Jeremy. Surely, Jeremy hadn't meant anything harsh from it, but he had to be careful with Valerie, she was already terrified of the man.

"I think what he means is, you need to not be so easily upset by what's going on," Gibby said in a soft tone of voice. "We don't like Sam. We hate her." Valerie nodded her head and closed her eyes. "She is going to be tortured, and I guess you're getting stuck with the hellish job of tending to her wounds and physical needs…but right now you don't have a choice."

"If you were to leave or tell anyone anything, you would be killed, simple as that," Hector said matter-of-factly. Victor would not hesitate to slaughter Valerie and her family. "You may wish to believe that I am the one calling the shots here, and believe it all you want, but there's a higher authority…you have no choice to stay with us."

"Yeah if you screw up, I'm probably not going to like it," Jeremy stated while placing his cards on the table. He had nothing, he would have to fold. "If you disobey us, break the rules, do things that are just stupid, I'm going to get pissed. Whether or not you hate Sam, I don't really give a fuck, I'm not asking you to beat on her daily. I'm not asking you to be hateful to her, though it would look good to me, I just don't care. Don't baby her, don't pamper her, I don't think she deserves it. Just toughen up, and quit your damn whining, because that whining is going to get you killed one day. You need to be strong."

"Think about it Valerie," Gibby said while looking directly into her eyes. "You have twice the reason to be stronger…" Nobody other than he and Valerie understood that sentence. She had to be strong not only for herself, but for the baby she was going to have. The situation called for her to be tough, or she might end up losing it completely. "Oh, and keep cooking us those great meals. You seem to enjoy it, and we really love your homemade cooking." Valerie smiled at the compliment as the group went on to continue their poker game.

* * *

So a bit of a bitersweet moment for the group, who seem almost like they would be a dysfunctional family.


	20. Hector's Idea

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 20 (Hector's Idea)

Valerie took the plate she prepared for Sam and entered the basement, she knew Sam did need to have nourishment, as she was having that baby. Sam could smell the food, and cursed the fact that they would eat without letting her have anything at all. They hadn't broken her yet, and they knew it. She looked up as the door opened and winced as the light hit her, she had grown so accustomed to this dark basement, that the light was almost painful whenever she went into it.

"Valerie? What did they send you down here for now?" Sam asked in a slightly cynical voice. She didn't mean to be, but she was getting extremely emotional. She watched Valerie walk down the steps and her eyes slowly fell to the plate in her hand. "Food? You brought food?"

"It's for you, I made it." Valerie smiled as Sam's mouth began to water. She saw the steak, the first thing her eyes had fixated upon, and she wanted it so badly. "I think at least I convinced them to give you more than just meager scraps. You do get portion of breakfast, lunch and dinner."

"You know Valerie, you don't have to be nice to me." Sam frowned as Valerie shrugged her shoulders. She knew that Valerie's niceness was the reason that she was sharing in part of this hellhole with her. If she wasn't so nice, the guys wouldn't be hurting her as well. "You should toughen up a bit."

"I know, the guys already basically lectured me on that one." Sam raised her eyebrow as Valerie chuckled nervously. She had cut the steak into small pieces already, since it made it easier for Sam in this situation. She pushed the fork into the steak and brought it to Sam's mouth. "I know, you probably aren't going to be happy with being fed like this, but…"

"They told you not to let me loose, didn't they."

"I'm sorry, Sam."

"It's fine." Sam took a bite of the steak and grinned, she hadn't tasted steak this good in a long time. Plus, it was medium well, just the way she liked it! "Wow, you're a good cook Valerie. What are you doing wasting away here?" Valerie shrugged as she brought another piece of the steak to Sam's mouth. Sam quickly took it off the fork and chewed it slowly, taking in all of the juices and flavors. She closed her eyes and smiled softly. How perfect could things get? Well this by no means was perfect, but the food in itself was great. "Valerie, did Jeremy go through with his threat on your family?"

"Yeah…" Sam's face started to lose her color as she closed her eyes and sighed. She wasn't sure if they were alive or not, and if they weren't, she would probably attempt to kill Jeremy pretty soon. Valerie quickly continued, seeing the expression on Sam's face. She smiled and scooped up some of the mashed potatoes. "But don't worry, 'someone' saved them. All of them!" Sam smiled gently and took the bite of the potatoes.

"Good. Now what time can I be allowed off these chains?" Valerie shrugged and looked at her watch. It seemed like Sam could be allowed off in an hour or two. "About an hour, maybe two, I'm not sure…"

"Okay. Oh, and has Jeremy done anything more to you?"

"No."

"I'm glad."

"I'm not as concerned about myself as I am for you…" Sam shrugged her shoulders and sighed. The chains were bolted at the top of the wall, so it made her arms hang up. They were tired and strained. This just wasn't right for her to be treated like this. After a couple minutes, the food was all gone and the plate was clean. Valerie smiled and set the plate down, then wiped Sam's mouth with a napkin. "Did you like it?"

"Yes. You are a good cook, Valerie. I bet you'd make Jonah _really_ happy with that cooking." Valerie blushed and placed her hands on her cheeks.

"Thanks…" Sam smirked slightly and started to say something else, but stopped when the door opened. The girls looked up as Jeremy appeared in the doorway. Valerie's eyes widened and she quickly backed up against the wall, a force of habit now whenever Jeremy came around her and nobody else was around for her. She had to get used to it, but he was so violent and so abusive.

"Valerie, Hector wants to talk to you," Jeremy issued while gesturing her to come upstairs. Valerie looked at Sam, who merely smiled weakly and nodded to her.

"When will I see you down here again?" Sam asked quietly. Jeremy heard this and rolled his eyes, then glared at Sam.

"It's getting to be too much of a privilege, letting you see Valerie often," Jeremy said as he crossed his arms. Sam and Valerie frowned and looked up at him. Would he restrict Valerie from seeing Sam? That wasn't right, he couldn't do that. Then again, he could do just about whatever he wanted to. "Now Valerie, get your little ass up here, I'm tired of waiting." Valerie stared at him and he rolled his eyes, knowing why she was hesitating. "If you don't hurry up here, I'm going to go down there and drag you up here." Just before he was about to make good of his promise, Gibby placed his hand on Jeremy's shoulder and smiled.

"Hey bud, you got Valerie up here yet?" Gibby asked. Jeremy growled as his eyes narrowed. Valerie smiled as Gibby looked to her and gestured her upstairs. "Come on, Hector's got something to tell you!" Valerie nodded and quickly hurried upstairs, brushing past Jeremy. Gibby looked at Jeremy and narrowed his eyes. "You want to take your anger out on something, don't take it out on her."

"Fuck you Gibby…" Gibby shrugged and turned away from Jeremy. Jeremy narrowed his eyes and stared downstairs, why was it Valerie got the good treatment all the time anyway? Why couldn't she be more like them? He growled and started heading downstairs, slowly closing the door as Sam screamed aloud. She had a feeling she was going to be beaten again. For what? What did she do?

"You wanted to talk to me, Hector?" Valerie asked with a smile. Hector was sitting in a recliner, with his fingers tapping the end table next to him. He nodded and looked up to Valerie who seemed to tower over him when standing.

"Gibby brought something up to me and I decided to call Victor up and see what he thought about it." Valerie nodded and gazed curiously at Gibby, who simply smiled at her. "Victor agreed to this. I've decided to send you through school and then pay for you to go to college, since you have that goal to be a chef. I think it's a good goal, and evidently, so does Gibby." Nevel peered over from the television, he frowned and raised his eyebrow. Wouldn't that put her in the position she could either talk or escape?

"Wait, what if she gets any ideas?" Nevel asked as he walked over, wanting to be a part of this discussion. Hector closed his eyes and lifted his hand up, he had already thought of that.

"Now this is what we talked to Victor about. The schools you will be sent to are the ones that he has control over. The teachers there, the staff and faculty, everybody is getting paid by him. They work for him. You can't tell anyone, because they're all being paid and again, they work for him. You can't escape, the doors are locked and you will be led in with someone." Valerie nodded in understanding, so she wouldn't be able to escape. But she was grateful enough for the opportunity to learn. "Does this sound good?"

"Yes!" Valerie exclaimed joyfully. "Do I get Home Ec classes?" Hector nodded his head and crossed his arms over. It seemed those classes were a given. Anything that dealt with cooking, it was clear she would want to take.

"Your classes will begin in a week. I suggest you prepare. Go to the store with Gibby, grab a backpack, supplies, anything you need for school. You may purchase a laptop, but as you know, there will be no internet access on any computer other than mine. If you wish to use the internet, you will have to ask me, and it _will_ be supervised. Do you understand?"

"Yes!"

"Okay, get going." Hector took a large sum of money from his wallet and handed it to Valerie. "This is in addition to your weekly allowance, it is enough to buy school supplies and a laptop. Get yourself some computer games too if you wish, but I believe studying would be more of a priority."

"Yes sir, thank you. Out of curiosity, how many schools does Victor own?"

"He's a very rich man, that's all I'm saying." Valerie chuckled nervously and then tensed when she heard the basement door open up. She looked over to see Jeremy walking out, eyes closed. Valerie knew he must have beaten Sam, she closed her eyes and looked away, it was so hard to ignore. She wanted to run down and see if Sam was okay, but Hector had to stop her. "Let Sam be, she can't expect someone to be there every time…"

"But…"

"Valerie." Valerie looked at Hector's stern face and lowered her eyes. She knew better than to question him. Jeremy looked at her and breathed in. She could feel his glare upon her, she just wanted to go away from him.

"I'm sorry sir…" Gibby sighed and placed his hand on Valerie's back.

"Come on Val, let's get your school stuff," Gibby said while walking her to the door. Valerie took one last glance at the basement door and closed her eyes, a tear escaped down her cheek as she and Gibby left the house. "Look at it this way Valerie, at least this way you won't have to be around Jeremy and the others constantly."

"You asked Hector to consider this for me?"

"Yes." Valerie smiled at him and looked away, she was grateful for that. The only question was, when would she ever be able to use whatever schooling she learned? If they were trapped there until their dying day, then how the hell could they possibly use anything? "Now you'll have to remember, Hector will move us around periodically. That means you may end up having a number of schools."

"Well that's going to get confusing, but I understand."

"You won't try to run, will you? If we do this for you…"

"No, I promise I won't." Besides, someone had to be there for Sam in this world of hell where everybody was a devil to her. Gibby was there for her, so why shouldn't she be the one there for Sam?

"Okay, good. Now, what do you think we'll need for your school?" She had a desk, but there was a large computer on it that was strictly used for monitoring the surveillance cameras, so she would need a new desk. She would need a lamp, and she would take Hector's suggestion for a laptop. She would need a binder, she'd need papers, folders, pens, and basically, a various assortment of items.

"A lot…" Gibby chuckled and nodded his head as they headed for the nearest Wal-Mart. "What about you? Are you going to continue any schooling?"

"No…" Gibby frowned and slowly closed his eyes. He had a feeling that he probably would die for his crimes. He lusted for that power too much, he couldn't stop being a part of the group that tortured Sam. After all Sam had done to him, he felt she deserved a little torture here and there. He actually had a dream of being killed, specifically by Carly, oddly enough. He looked much older in appearance, maybe in his twenties, and Carly came in and killed him. It seemed so real, felt so real. "I don't think I'll ever have any use for it." No, he just didn't think he was going to live long enough to be anything. His life had ended just as much as Nevel's and Jeremy's when they joined with Hector. Valerie was the only one that still had a chance. Jonah and Freddie were still out there, they were still looking, and no matter how much Hector and Victor covered their tracks, the men _would_ find them one day. When that day came, Gibby could feel it, all hell would break loose. The girls would be freed.

* * *

Hope you liked the chapter penny.


	21. Labor

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 21 (Labor)

Several months passed by, Gibby had managed to convince Valerie to tell Hector about her pregnancy. When she did, he wasn't too upset, but he did wish she had told him before. He had a gynecologist that had been paid to come visit Sam, so he did the same for Valerie. Now, Valerie was due any day now. Jeremy didn't actually know she was pregnant, since Hector didn't bother to tell him. When he did find out, he was pissed because it meant Hector was giving her special treatment.

Jeremy walked into Valerie's bedroom and glared angrily at her, she looked up from her bed and frowned. He'd left her alone for the most part, but whenever he came to her, he always looked ready to hurt her. "Hey Jeremy, I'm trying to study for my math final now," Valerie said quietly. Hector decided not to move them around until both Sam and Valerie had their children and Valerie's school year ended. Jeremy narrowed his eyes and kicked Valerie's book out of her hand. "Hey!"

"Why the _hell_ do you always get this special treatment?" Jeremy asked as he grabbed Valerie by the neck and lifted her up. She tried to scream out, but Jeremy was holding her neck too tightly for her to make a sound. He slammed her against the wall as she gripped his arms.

"J-Jeremy please…" Tears came to her eyes as he felt her protruding stomach. He hated her, he hated her unborn child. Why did Hector treat her the way he did? Why did Gibby feel the need to protect her? It wasn't _fair_. "Jeremy, what are you going to do? Please no…" He was focusing too much on her belly, was he going to try and force her to have a miscarriage this late into her pregnancy?

"This baby is an abomination." Jeremy clenched his fist and Valerie's eyes widened. He was going to punch her, he was going to kill her baby. She couldn't let that happen. She struggled and groaned as Jeremy eyed her belly. "If you think you can just go around having babies, then you've got another thing coming."

"N-No! Leave her alone!" Valerie already knew her baby's gender. During her pregnancy, she'd done so much for this child inside of her. She was in love with this baby before it was even born yet. She wasn't going to let Jeremy do a thing to her.

"So it is a girl. Damn, girls are prominent in your family." Valerie breathed in and closed her eyes. She couldn't call out for Gibby, she couldn't scream. God she wanted him to leave her alone.

"H-Help!"

"Don't bother. Gibby's not even in the house right now…" Valerie screamed as Jeremy hit her in the face. "Shut up!" She screamed and tried to pry his fingers off of her neck. He narrowed his eyes and felt something hit his leg. Valerie's eyes widened and he slowly looked down. Her water just broke. "Oh…_shit!_" Jeremy released her and quickly ran out of the bedroom. Gibby was out back, so he was the person to contact.

Valerie grunted and made her way over to her bed, she was going into labor. She screamed in pain as Gibby and Hector barged into the room. She had her arms on her bed and her face buried into her pillow, she was biting it and screaming into it. "Valerie!" Gibby called out as he hurried over to her. He helped her up onto the bed and looked over at Hector. "What do we do?" Hector paled and quickly pulled out his phone, he was going to call the gynecologist. He had absolutely no idea how to handle a pregnancy.

"Hey Doc, we got a problem," Hector spoke into the phone when the doctor finally answered. "Valerie's gone into labor." The doctor issued Hector to follow everything she said until she made it to the place. Hector nodded his head and hurried over to Valerie. "Wait, I'm not pulling her pants down!"

"You have to, otherwise you're not getting that baby out," The lady said. Hector moaned as Valerie continued screaming. Gibby rolled his eyes and quickly tore Valerie's pants off, then held her hand as Hector put the phone on speaker. Hector looked over and his face became as white as a sheet. "Okay, am I on speaker?"

"Yes…" Hector placed the phone next to Valerie and looked away, he felt the sweat starting to run down his forehead.

"Valerie, I'm going to ask you to take a few deep breaths, okay?"

"I can't do this!" Valerie screamed. "I can't do it!"

"You're going to be fine," Gibby said as he squeezed her hand. Valerie still wanted Jonah there next to her, but that wasn't allowed. They just had to hope Sam didn't go into labor now, since she was also due pretty damn soon. Gibby knew he had to remain calm, nobody needed to panic.

"Hector, do you think you need to leave the room?" Gibby asked as he looked to the man. Hector seemed like he was about to pass out. Who knew he had a weak stomach?

"No, I'll be all right." Valerie screamed again as she started trying to push the baby out of her. This girl wanted out, screw staying inside of the womb, that wasn't going to work anymore.

In the basement, Sam could hear Valerie's moans and yells. At first, she wondered if they were doing something bad to her, but in hindsight, she understood that Valerie must have started going into labor. She looked down at her belly and frowned, she didn't want to give birth. She was going to have twins. She didn't like having Hector's children, hell she _was_ Hector's child. What the hell possessed him to do this to her? She clenched her teeth and closed her eyes, letting the tears run down.

She was trying to toughen herself up, but it wasn't happening. She lifted her head up and felt her stomach starting to churn. She moaned and bowed her head, her babies were kicking. If she were to go into labor, it wouldn't be early for her. Valerie was late. Sam slowly breathed out and looked at the basement door, it was cracked just enough. The babies kicked again, harder, and Sam grunted in pain. The pain was very sharp. Her eyes widened the pain continued. "No," She whispered. "No!" She lifted her head up and screamed in pain. "Help! Nevel! Jeremy! Anybody!"

Upstairs, Nevel was waiting in the living room, trying to ignore the screams coming from Valerie. He really didn't want to see her give birth, as he felt he'd be insanely disgusted by it. He looked over to see Jeremy pacing the floor, running his hand through his hair. Suddenly they heard Sam's loud bellowing and both of them lifted their heads up. "Oh god," Nevel said quietly. "Please don't tell me…"

"Sam's going into labor too!" Jeremy shouted out. He quickly ran into Valerie's room to alert Hector while Nevel went downstairs to help Sam out. This was a nightmare. They didn't mind Valerie, since Jonah was the father, but _Sam_. None of them could really wrap their heads around the fact that Hector impregnated his own daughter. "Hector! Hector, Sam's going into labor!"

"What?" Hector shouted out fearfully. The doctor on the phone then instructed Sam to be put in the same room as Valerie was, she had to work with both of them. "Shit, Jeremy go take the bed from Gibby's room and prop it up next to Valerie's." Jeremy nodded and ran out of the room.

Nevel made it to Sam, whose entire body was shaking by now. "Nevel, I'm...oh god!"

"Hold on Sam!" Nevel panicked and began freeing Sam from her chains. She screamed in pain as he started leading her to the stairs. "Are you going to be able to make it upstairs?"

"I don't care, just get me somewhere!" Hector opened the basement door and Sam stepped back, she didn't want him anywhere near her. He ran down to her and picked her up. She started panicking, yelling out even more. "Not you, I hate you! I _hate you!_"

"Just shut up, I'm getting you to Valerie's room," Hector replied. The whole place was in a panic now. Jeremy pushed the bed into Valerie's room and placed it next to hers. Hector ran in and carefully placed Sam next to Valerie, then removed her pants. She actually kicked him several times during the process. Finally, after a long time of waiting, the doctor had arrived. She ran into the room and started ordering everybody out except Gibby. She knew that Valerie had more compatibility with him and wouldn't mind him being there to help calm her down. Valerie and Sam both had issued negative reactions against Hector, Jeremy, and Nevel.

The men were pacing in the living room, trying to figure out what to do with their time. "How the _hell_ could you make her pregnant?" Jeremy screamed at Hector. He narrowed his eyes and stared at the youth.

"You were the one that made my mind start slipping away, so don't give me that! Hell, you're no better, you don't think we see how you look at Valerie?"

"Well at least Valerie isn't my own _flesh and blood!_" Hector growled and grabbed Jeremy's shirt, glaring into his eyes. "You're just a sick bastard!"

"It takes one to know one, chump." Nevel yelled out and quickly stepped in between the two, trying to push them apart. He knew that fighting would get them nowhere fast.

"Guys relax, we can't fight right now!" Nevel proclaimed. "We just need to learn to tolerate each other. The girls are having children, whether we want it or not. We need to deal with it."

"I really don't want to raise children."

"I know, nobody here seems to want to, but we can't help it."

"I know…" Hector ran his hand through his hair and tried to stop his chattering teeth. He didn't want any children, he didn't want to be a father, or was it grandfather? He didn't know how this was supposed to be. _"My god, I am an asshole." _Incest was unnatural, but even more unnatural was the forcible rape of your own child. He couldn't stop himself, though. Why couldn't he stop? He didn't care, he enjoyed the thrill of sex as it were.

Hours passed and finally the girls had given birth to their children. Valerie held her baby girl in her arms and smiled, singing softly to it. Sam looked over, holding her twins in her arms. When she looked at them, she loved them. She didn't care how they came to be, she loved them because they were a part of her. Valerie loved her daughter, she loved her so much. Sam looked over and smiled at her as Valerie sang. "What is that you're singing to her?" Sam asked softly.

"In My Daughter's Eyes by Martina McBride, my mom always loved singing it to me." Valerie rocked her baby, the girl wasn't even crying. Sam nodded and looked at the little girl.

"She has his eyes."

"She's beautiful."

"What's her name?" Valerie continued to gaze into her baby's eyes.

"Rachel."

"That's a beautiful name." Sam cradled her two boys and started singing Baby Mine. Valerie smiled at her and closed her eyes, Sam had a very beautiful singing voice. She wondered if Freddie had ever heard such a voice in his life. "They bring the life back to me…"

"I know…"

"How could something so precious, be born in a place so filled with sin?" Sam slowly draped the towels back around her two boys. One of the twins had bright blue eyes while the other had deep brown eyes. "Derek and Adam, I think I'm going to name them that." Valerie nodded her head and held Rachel close to her, she was never letting her daughter go.

"If only Jonah could see his beautiful baby girl." Sam didn't feel jealous at all towards Valerie, having someone like Jonah to father her child. No, she was extremely happy for her. She had to get past her sons being fathered by him, but it might be difficult at first.

"I accept my boys, regardless of their…father…" It was like acid on her tongue, it burned her mouth so badly. She closed her eyes and sobbed once. Valerie placed her hand on Sam's hand and squeezed it gently.

"It's going to be okay, Sam. You'll see. Something good's going to come of all this, I'm sure." The door opened and Jeremy entered the room. He frowned as the babies began to cry. The new mothers quickly began trying to coax them and comfort them.

"Don't think we're going to let you raise your children for long," Jeremy said scornfully. Valerie and Sam looked up and clutched their babies closer, fearing that Jeremy might try and take them away. "Sam, you're going to be chained, or well…It seems Hector's been considering just putting you in a cell. You aren't going to be able to raise those kids."

"You aren't touching our children," Valerie said while narrowing her gaze. She didn't care if it was Jeremy, she would defend her baby to him no matter what. Jeremy growled and slowly approached her.

"You can take your little baby…" Jeremy grabbed Rachel from Valerie's arms and she screamed, reaching up for her.

"Rachel! Give me my baby!" Sam shouted in protest and glared angrily at him.

"Give her back her little girl!" Sam shouted. Jeremy smirked and held the crying baby in his arms, cradling her.

"Look at this little girl," Jeremy said while rocking her back and forth. "It would be such a shame if someone dropped her on her head." Jeremy made a dropping motion and Valerie screamed, throwing her hands up.

"Jeremy, what are you doing?" Gibby's voice floated in the air. Jeremy turned his head around and saw Gibby standing in the doorway, his arms crossed and his stern gaze narrowed onto him. Gibby approached him, almost menacingly. He carefully took Rachel into his arms and stared at Jeremy dangerously. "If I were you, I'd leave the room now."

"Fuck you Gibby."

"Now. Jeremy." Jeremy rolled his eyes and threw his hands up in frustration. He muttered to himself and left the room as Gibby handed Rachel to Valerie. Rachel cooed as Valerie snuggled her close, tears fleeing her eyes.

"Momma's not letting anything happen to you baby," Valerie said as she kissed her daughter's forehead. "The mean man isn't going to hurt you."

"The babies aren't safe here," Gibby said quietly. It was pretty obvious that babies being here would be very bad. Valerie and Sam looked up hopelessly, seeing no possible way to change that. Gibby sighed and slowly closed the door, he actually had a suggestion for them. "I uh…I have a girlfriend, you know…"

"When did that happen?" Valerie asked curiously. Gibby blushed and looked down, he had kept it a secret from everyone. For quite some time now, whenever he had his daily time to get out of the house, he would meet up with a girl that he met at the movies one night. "You started dating someone and never told _me_? I thought we were close, Gibby." She was teasing him now. He blushed more and crossed his arms over.

"Her name is Sylvia. She's really sweet. She loves kids, and when I told her about you two being pregnant…she offered to look after them for you."

"Wait, you mean you _told_ her what-" Gibby grunted and quickly cupped his hand over Valerie's mouth. Sam's eyes grew wide in wonder and Gibby slowly looked away. He couldn't help it, whenever he was with Sylvia, he just _had_ to tell the truth. He couldn't lie to her. She even asked.

"Well, she asked because she knew I'd been missing for some time. She waited a while to ask. I know I can trust her...I told her that we were forced into silence, threatened, and all the other stuff that's going on. She says she won't tell anybody, for fear of my safety and hers."

"Okay, doesn't Hector and Victor have guys watching you?" Sam asked as she slowly sat up straight. So why did nobody know what was going on? Gibby frowned and looked towards the window. He actually was deemed the most 'trustworthy' by Hector, who was more lenient with him.

"If Jeremy's upset about special treatment…maybe if he acted more like me, Hector would trust him enough to not have people spying on his every move. Sure, they still got guys on me, but Hector understands the need to have a relationship. They don't spy on me then."

"Lucky ass…"

"Yeah, but she's offered to look after the children, since she knows they're in a dangerous situation. Think about it for a while…" The girls nodded as Gibby slowly left the room. They didn't know what they were going to do, but they did agree with Gibby, their babies lives were in danger while living in this house.

* * *

Sorry messed up, it's fixed now!


	22. Decisions

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 22 (Decisions)

A month later, it had been decided that Rachel and the twins would be safer with Sylvia. Gibby managed to coax Hector into the idea, saying that she was one of the many hundreds of hired people and could actually take care of the children. He agreed to it, especially when Gibby told him what he had caught Jeremy doing on the day of their birth. Valerie would be allowed to visit her child often, but Sam obviously was restricted. She wasn't sure if she wanted to have that restriction, but she really didn't want to run the risk that she lose her children for good.

Valerie and Gibby pushed the strollers to where his girlfriend worked, the Playtime Daycare Center. Valerie was afraid of not being able to see her daughter like Sam, but she had faith that everything would be okay. "So Gibby, what happens when Hector decides to move us around?" Gibby frowned and rubbed the back of his neck, he hadn't thought of that. "I don't want to be miles away from my daughter."

"Well, I know Hector hasn't had any reason to move yet, so it should be okay for now. If he decides to move, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it." Valerie nodded as they approached the building. Perhaps if they ever did have to move, they would bring the children home. Valerie wasn't sure if she could go through with this. Rachel was hers, she was an angel. The baby had a picture clutched in her clothing, it was of the two mothers and their children. Gibby had taken the photo. "If it comes to that, we'll bring the kids back."

"I don't know if I can do this, Gibby. I love my little girl." She didn't want to run the risk of Jeremy doing anything to Rachel, though. Rachel was her hope, though. Her hope that one day something good was going to happen and things would be better. "I love my little girl."

"You don't have to leave her with Sylvia if you don't want to. It's entirely up to you." Valerie was happy to be able to have that decision. Right now, though, she would have to see what it was like to have her daughter under the care of someone else. When they entered, they found Sylvia working with a small group of children. She looked up at Gibby and smiled.

"Hey Gibby, I see you found the place," Sylvia said while walking over to him. She was pretty. She had sandy brown hair that reached to her waist and was wearing a white t-shirt with faded blue jeans. Gibby smiled as she took his hands and kissed his cheek. She then looked at the babies and knelt down. "Aw, and these are the cute little ones?"

"Yeah, the one with the dark brown patch of hair is Rachel, that's Valerie's baby. The other two are Sam's, they are twins." Sylvia nodded and picked up one of the two twins. She would make them at home, she truly loved taking care of children.

"They're so adorable!" Valerie bent over and picked Rachel up. She smiled and cradled the girl in her hands. Looking into the infant's eyes, she just couldn't bear to part with her. Sure she'd see her child often, but who knew how long it would be until she honestly got the chance? The child would be a lot safer with Jonah, but that didn't seem to be an option.

Valerie knew every mole on her daughter's body, where her birthmark was, she had spent so many hours just counting her little fingers and toes. This baby had become her _life_. Tears left her eyes as Rachel peered up at her. Her eyes were so innocent, so questioning, as if she knew and understood what was going on. Gibby and Sylvia watched Valerie and remained silent, letting her decide what she wanted to do. Valerie held Rachel close and shook her head, there was no way on earth she could give this baby up. "I can't do it, I can't do it…"

"Then keep her at the house and I'll make sure both you and your daughter stay safe for as long as possible," Gibby said with a small smile. Valerie was thankful, she really didn't know what she was going to do. She was scared, very scared. "As for the other two, there's nothing we can do but leave them here. Hector doesn't want them and Sam's not allowed to keep them." Valerie frowned and carried her baby outside, then stared up into the sky. Where was Jonah right now? What would he do? He would be able to care for these children, wouldn't he?

Far away, Freddie and Carly managed to meet up somewhere in Seattle. They were worn and distraught, Sam never returned to them. "It's almost been an entire year," Freddie said with a small frown. Carly slowly nodded her head as the two walked through the streets. "I still miss her more than anything. I want her back."

"You haven't dated anyone else, huh?"

"How could I?" Carly understood, and she wouldn't press matters. They still believed Sam to be alive. They were going to continue doing everything in their power to find her. "I saw some of your latest movies, they're not too bad."

"Thanks, and neither are those manuscripts you sent me." Freddie smiled with pride as he patted the strap of his backpack. He'd already gotten started on his writing, which was a really good thing. He even had a good editor, dare he mention who it was though. Carly knew, he told her not that long ago. They were surprised Hector worked for that publishing company, but as long as he helped publish Freddie's stuff, that was fine. The subject of his daughter's loss was still a pretty sore subject for him.

"So Mr. Puckett seems to be making a pretty good turnaround," Freddie commented while rubbing his chin lightly. "He got out of prison and got a good job at a publishing company…so he's doing pretty well it seems."

"Yeah too bad you can't ever find him anywhere. Has he ever mentioned where he lives?"

"No…I've only gotten notices and stuff from him." Granted, it would have been nice to know where his editor lived. He couldn't help but wonder what kind of house Hector lived in, since clearly the man had money. He obviously got that money from his business partner, he had to have. "I think it's nice to be getting manuscripts and stuff back with proofread marks, one of my stories is actually on the verge of being _published_."

"I'm proud of you Freddie." They contemplated doing an iCarly just for old times sake, sort of like a reunion every now and then. After a year of having it, what would happen if they just shot one more. No, there were too many memories involved in it. They weren't trying to forget Sam, no they could never do that, but they were getting to the point where maybe they needed to move on from her. "Ms. Briggs is actually turning out to be a pretty decent body guard."

"Well that's good, I still say I never thought she'd be one. She's always a bit scary though, so maybe she's just scary enough." Carly chuckled as they passed the groovy smoothie. T-Bo was in the window. He looked out at them and waved sadly. Ever since Sam's disappearance, they never went to that smoothie shop. Sam was the one that introduced them to the place anyway. Never again would they see Gibby running in there and the old man fleeing at the sight of him, never again would they hear Jeremy groaning because he sneezed smoothie everywhere, never again would they hear Sam shout at another one of T-Bo's weird ideas.

"You think we ought to go in there? Is it still painful for you?"

"Yeah, sometimes…You know nobody's taken her locker yet."

"Really? I would have thought someone would be using it by now." Freddie shook his head and looked up into the sky. "Hey, is it true what happened to Valerie's family all those months ago?"

"Yeah, I thought I told you. My dad was working with someone because this big group of people had threatened the family. They're safe now, they moved somewhere…not sure where exactly." Carly shrugged as they stopped near Ridgeway. It was hard for Freddie in there, since everywhere he looked, he heard Sam. "I can feel it, Carly. She's still out there. I don't know where, but she's there."

"We should keep hoping that, keep believing it. Because…I don't think I could make it if I believed otherwise." Freddie breathed in and slowly relaxed.

"You know, every now and then I think I've stumbled upon the mystery. There's a lot I've discovered, and that is that the murders of Jeremy's father, Gibby and Nevel's family, and their disappearances are all connected."

"You felt like people are watching you, by any chance?" Freddie looked at her and her jaw grew firm. "I have, and I'm not talking about my fans. I constantly feel like I'm being watched. Ms. Briggs says it would be paranoia associated with the loss of my best friend." Every now and then, she felt as though someone was watching her, someone sinister. What would happen if she was right? What if there was someone violent watching her, checking to make sure she didn't stumble too close to what happened to Sam?

"Maybe…maybe we ought to just focus on our schooling and other projects right now. Maybe if we didn't focus so much on Sam, that paranoia would go away."

"What are you suggesting? That we give up on her?"

"No. Never would I suggest that." Freddie closed his eyes and breathed out, he just knew it wasn't his place right now. He couldn't do anything, and whenever he tried, something bad would happen. He couldn't count how many times it seemed someone sent him a death threat urging him to stop looking for Sam. "I just think maybe we should take a break…"

"A break? And for how long would we take this break?"

"We'll never stop looking for her, Carly…"

"I know." Tears came to Carly's eyes as Freddie hugged her and let her cry on his shoulder. "Why did this happen to us, Freddie? Why? Why'd it happen to our Sam?"

"Stay strong Carly. We're going to see her again, I believe it. It's just right now, we can do nothing. There _is_ nothing we can do except be there for each other. It's a hard decision to make, but until there can be something we _can_ do…there is nothing…"

* * *

They will never give up on Sam, but one day they will find her. Time is going to start increasing a bit here soon, and we'll start seeing some things that lead into familiar territory.


	23. Birthday Celebrations

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 23 (Birthday Celebration)

Years passed by and Rachel turned three, along with the twins. This was the happiest day of Valerie's life, her baby girl was a beautiful toddler. Gibby made good on his promise to keep Rachel safe from harm. Jeremy never tried anything to the girl. Although on this day, he was coming under fire, as his girlfriend was five months pregnant with his child. But pregnancies seemed to be affluent, as Jeremy and Nevel both had ended up dating people too. Jeremy had several one night stands, and one of the girls ended up pregnant with his child four months ago. Whoever decided it was a good idea to date Nevel, was also giving birth to a child. These weren't the only women pregnant, Sam's nightmare happened a second time when her father became drunk six months ago. He abused her and now she was once again pregnant.

"Again, why the hell did you let me get drunk?" Hector asked as he sat with the men at the table.

"None of us were _here_," Gibby said with a low scowl in his voice. Hector kept going on and on about that and no one wanted to talk about it. They looked over as Rachel came bounding into the room. She had her hair up in pigtails and had two blue ribbons in her hair. She also wore a purple dress. She spun around and lifted her arms up. Gibby smiled as he bent over and picked the little girl up. To her, he was like an uncle. She was so young, she didn't know the things that happened in this house. Valerie came hurrying in and smiled at Rachel, crossing her arms.

"Uncle Gibby won't make me take a bath!" Rachel said defensively. She stuck out her tongue and smiled widely. "It's my birthday, and Uncle Gibby says I don't _have_ to take a bath if I don't want to. Right?"

"Oh there's a lot of things _Uncle Gibby_ would say," Jeremy stated while rolling his eyes. He laughed briefly as Gibby handed Rachel right to her mother. Rachel gasped and stared with wide eyes at Gibby. She had been tricked, how could he!

"You tricked me Uncle Gibby!" Valerie laughed and tapped Rachel on the nose. Gibby cooed briefly and rubbed her on the head.

"Now, now, you need to take a bath before you can celebrate," Gibby stated with a smile. He thought Rachel was adorable.

"Can I see Derek and Adam today?" She was so cute, it was hard for any of them to resist her. Having a little girl so young really did affect them in various ways. Jeremy didn't really seem affected, though. He still hated Valerie, he still wished ill for Rachel, no matter how cute she was. Valerie had learned to cook a lot of meals by now, and really won some of them over with her cooking. Of course, she always made sure her daughter got the best of everything.

"Yes, you can see them today," Valerie said with a gentle smile. They had moved in the last three years,but fortunately not far away at all. Hence, Gibby was still with Sylvia and she was pregnant with his child. The boys each had a child legitimately, though being around a man like Hector did screw with Jeremy's mind at least. "First you need your bath, though."

"Okay Mommy!" Rachel often wondered about her father, and why it was he wasn't around. She was far too young to understand what was going on and too young to understand why she didn't see Sam very often. One day she would, however. That day was not to come for a long time. Valerie carried her away to the bathroom and started filling the tub with water. "Mommy, when will I ever see daddy again?" Valerie frowned sadly and closed her eyes. She wasn't sure even when she'd see Jonah. It had been a while since she'd heard his voice, since she hadn't really received the time to talk to him on her radio, and she couldn't afford anyone else finding out about it.

"Someday soon sweetheart, someday soon." Rachel frowned as Valerie undressed her and set her into the water. She then smiled and started splashing in the tub, she really did enjoy taking baths, just as much as she enjoyed making her mom run around after her. She watched Valerie turn off the water and start rinsing her hair with water. She felt so happy being pampered by her mommy, there was nothing greater than the love of her own mom. She started humming as her mom began scrubbing the shampoo into her hair.

"Promise? Mommy, you promise? Promise I'll see daddy?" Valerie blinked as Rachel dipped herself beneath the water and started swishing her head from side to side, getting all of the shampoo out. She quickly rose from the water and grinned. "My hair's clean, mommy?" Valerie nodded and began to soap Rachel's body, making sure to cover her entirely in soap. "All the dirtiness is going away mommy, I'm going to be clean!" Rachel giggled and dipped herself in the water once more, cleansing herself of the dirt.

"That's my little girl." Valerie started draining the tub, then continued rinsing Rachel's body. "And yes, I promise you're going to see daddy soon." Rachel squealed for joy as Valerie helped her out of the tub. Valerie felt a little guilty, promising something to her daughter that she wasn't even sure if she could fulfill. But she was a mother, she needed to figure a way to make it possible. But how, if they were here in Portland, Oregon and Jonah was all the way in Index, Washington. That was nearly a four hour drive. Then again, Jonah was now going to Antioch University in Seattle, which was closer, but not by much. Maybe it could be done, but it would be a hell of a road trip.

"I get to have cake, now?" Rachel dressed and Valerie laughed, she loved how innocent her baby was. The guys should have the cake out by now. Valerie lifted her daughter up and walked out into the kitchen where the birthday cake sat in the center of the table. It had three small candles positioned on the cake. "Yay cake!" Valerie chuckled as she set Rachel down. The youthful little girl bounced over to the cake and sat down as the others surrounded her. "So, you guys are going to sing? What's first, cake or presents?"

"Let's have the cake first," Hector said with a small smile. There was a big pile of presents, but they were all in Gibby's car. "You can get the presents at the end of the day, okay."

"Okay." Then everyone began to sing happy birthday to her. She closed her eyes and made a wish, then blew the candles out. Valerie sliced the cake and began serving it to everyone. This was going to be a great day. It wasn't long before the cake was eaten, that Rachel was already ready to go play with the twins. "Mommy, can we go see Derek now?"

"Yes, we can go see Derek now," Valerie said with a laugh. Rachel cheered and jumped out of her seat, then ran for the door. She wanted to go _now_, no waiting. Valerie chuckled and looked over at Gibby, he was going to be driving them there. "Well, are you ready to go?"

"Yeah, let's get moving," Gibby stated while jumping up from his seat. He was more than eager to see Sylvia. It was only noon, so he had the entire day to be romantic with her. Jeremy glared as they left, he was going to get rid of that girl, he couldn't stand having that pest of a child here. He waited as Gibby started the car and drove off, then he slowly rose from his seat and started leaving.

"Where are you going?" Hector asked suspiciously. He didn't agree with the look on Jeremy's face, but didn't have much to comment about. The guy wasn't doing anything yet.

"I'm taking my daily outside break," Jeremy said while walking through the front door. Hector and Nevel exchanged concerned looks, then went on with their business. Jeremy got into his car and growled. "I am tired of all the fucking special treatment Valerie and her little freak of a daughter get. I am going to end it once and for all." He started up his car and started driving towards Sylvia's home. "Damn Gibby has to protect her at every turn, I'd like to see what happens when I get my hands on her and he _can't_ be there to show up."

Gibby and Valerie met up with Sylvia, who was playing with the twins in the back yard. They were happy celebrating their third birthday. "Auntie Sylvia says we still can't see our mommy," Derek said with a pout as Gibby and Valerie rounded the corner. He looked over and smiled happily when he saw Rachel. "Rachel!"

"Derek!" Rachel exclaimed happily as she ran up to him and hugged him. Adam walked up to the two and waved, he was very quiet, unlike his brother. He wondered if his mother wanted him, both of them did. Sylvia would often say that she wanted them, but for some reason, she wasn't able to be with them at the time.

"Sylvia tells us that mom might be with us again someday." Gibby chuckled nervously as Valerie slowly glared at him, she was always just a little peeved that he was still so into torturing Sam. Sylvia looked at Gibby sadly and gestured for him to follow her. She wanted to talk to him about his choice in being evil. She didn't agree. She never agreed. Gibby sighed in despair as she dragged him to the other side of the yard.

"I thought I was bringing out the good in you," Sylvia said as she crossed her arms over. "And do you guys still have that poor girl locked up in the basement?"

"Well…"

"I think Uncle Gibby's in trouble," Adam said quietly. If he knew the circumstances, would he be calling Gibby 'Uncle' at all? That's what Valerie wondered.

"Well, let's not think too much about why Sylvia's probably yelling at him right now," Valerie said with a laugh as she picked Adam up and hugged him. Derek and Rachel decided to explore and wander about. They just happened to wander into the front yard as Jeremy's black Cadillac Eldorado pulled up behind Gibby's brown sedan.

* * *

Here we go, next chapter will be a chase.


	24. High Speed Chase

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N: I just want to AGAIN reply to an anonymous person: Are you stupid? This is not a Sam bashing story and it is appropriate to have it as Sam/Freddie. IF YOU HAD BEEN PAYING ATTENTION, those details are the SAME AS THE ORIGINAL PATERNAL BONDS, which also means if you've seen that story you know what happens to Sam in the end, so it is NOT Sam bashing. And this story focuses more on Valerie and Sam anyway.

* * *

Chapter 24 (High Speed Chase)

Jeremy pulled up in his car and rolled the window down, he smiled as he watched Rachel and Derek playing with the flowers in the grass. The little girl didn't know that today would be her final day, and 'Uncle Jeremy' was about to wring her neck until she died, just what he wanted to do to that mother of hers. "Rachel!" Jeremy called out. Rachel and Derek quickly looked up and at him. Derek wasn't sure about him, but Rachel never saw anything wrong with Jeremy.

"Uncle Jeremy!" Rachel called out happily. "Derek, its Uncle Jeremy!" Derek hesitated as he followed Rachel to Jeremy's car. "Hi, what do you want?"

"Well, I just got a call from your mother and she says it's okay for me to take you for a little drive. So hop in and let's go around the block." Rachel frowned and tapped her nose, something she often did when she was thinking. She didn't know if her mom really wanted her to go off or not, but Jeremy wasn't mean, right? "Come on kid, what do you say? Come for a ride with your old Uncle Jeremy?"

"Hmm, okay! Derek, let's go, he should have us back soon." Rachel opened the back door and Jeremy grinned maliciously. Rachel turned her head as she and Derek started getting in the car. "Mom! We're going on a ride with Uncle Jeremy!"

"Okay!" Valerie replied while talking to Adam. She then froze, the color quickly draining from her face as she turned around to see Rachel getting into Jeremy's car and him rolling the window up. "No! Rachel! Get out of his car! NO!" She ran out into the front yard as Jeremy started to drive off. She screamed and the tears shot from her eyes. Suddenly, she felt Gibby grab her.

"Come on!" Gibby shouted as he pulled her to his car. He'd seen Rachel climb into the car and he knew it wouldn't be good.

"My baby!"

"We're going to get her back Valerie. We will get her back." Sylvia frowned as Adam watched the two drive off in a rush, now was no time to start panicking. Gibby turned the corner and growled, he was going to kick Jeremy's ass after this.

"You shouldn't have gotten into my car," Jeremy said with narrow eyes. Rachel frowned as Derek stared at the man he thought was a really bad man. Jeremy laughed maliciously and looked into the rearview mirror. "I hadn't expected one of Sam's kids to be here either…It was just going to be Rachel."

"What are you doing?" Rachel asked with a timid voice. Now she really felt scared, the tone in Jeremy's voice was too cruel sounding. "I thought you were being nice…"

"Nice? Me?" Jeremy laughed insanely and smirked evilly. "No, your mother never let me do anything with you. In fact, I'm going to take you somewhere and I'm going to tear your head from your body." Rachel paled and dug her fingers into the seat cushions. She wanted out of the car now. She wanted her mommy.

"You're not good! You're mean! You're a _mean man!_"

"Yep, it's about time you figured that one out." Jeremy looked down at his gas tank and growled, he was out of gas. How the hell was he out of gas? When was the last time he filled it up. Thinking back, he realized the answer to the question. _"Shit, I filled it up a month ago."_ He moaned and pulled into a gas station, he needed to fill up the car, evidently. He opened the car door and looked inside one last time. "You brats stay in here, got that?" He shut the door and walked over to the nozzle. He hated how that part wasn't in his plans.

"We have to get out," Derek said as he nudged Rachel. She was crying, too frightened to be able to think straight.

"I'm scared Derek, I'm scared!"

Gibby drove down the road as both he and Valerie searched the road furiously with their eyes. It was not long before Valerie spotted Jeremy's car at the gas pump. "There they are!" Valerie exclaimed. Gibby nodded and slowly pulled in at the pump next to Jeremy's car. His back was turned to them while he was fueling his vehicle. How stupid of him. Derek and Rachel looked out the window and smiled when they saw Valerie motioning for them to come to her.

"Mommy!" Rachel pushed the car door open and the two children spilled out of the car. Jeremy opened his eyes when he heard the noise and looked over in confusion. He gasped when he spotted Gibby smirking at him from his car.

"Hey! Get back in the car!" Jeremy shouted out as he ran to the other side of his car. It was too late, Rachel had piled into her mother's arms and Derek into the backseat. "Damn! Damn, damn, damn!" Jeremy quickly entered the driver's side, forgetting that he'd not filled up the tank more than probably a quarter and he had also not removed the pump and placed the cap back on.

"Where to, Valerie?" Gibby asked as he made his way to the exit of the gas station. Valerie sobbed and held Rachel quietly, letting the girl hold her. Rachel closed her eyes and sighed.

"Rachel sweetie, how would you like to go be with Daddy?" Valerie asked quietly. Gibby raised his eyebrow as Rachel smiled brightly. It was the safest thing to do. Her family was still safe, Jonah was still safe, so if Rachel was with her father, she would be safe.

"I get to see Daddy? Yay!" Valerie sniffed and smiled sadly, so that was the answer.

"You heard her Gibby. To Antioch University" Gibby muttered as he pulled his GPS out and handed it to Valerie. She quickly typed in the address as Rachel climbed into the backseat and put her seatbelt on. "Okay baby, we're going to see your daddy, it's going to be a long trip."

"Hector isn't going to be happy about this," Gibby muttered as he turned out of the gas station. The GPS wanted him to get on I-5 Northbound towards Seattle, and would be travelling it for 167 miles.

"He is going to be more furious at Jeremy for trying to hurt my daughter than he will be with us!"

"This is true." Gibby looked in the rearview mirror in time to see Jeremy shoot out of the gas station, letting the gas pump shoot out from his gas tank. He sped out at a sharp turn and nearly caused an accident. "Shit, we have company. Although it's kind of amusing seeing him forget the gas pump."

"What?" Valerie looked back and paled. She could see Jeremy's eyes, they were red like the devil.

"Sorry about this Valerie…" Valerie screamed as Gibby slammed on the gas and shot past a light and onto the freeway, Jeremy flew by the same light and flew onto the freeway after them.

"Gibby! There are kids in the car!"

"Yeah, kids being hunted in the devil car behind us!" True. She looked back to see Jeremy still appearing to be advancing upon them. She screamed out in a panic and turned around.

"Drive Gibby, drive! By the way Rachel, when you learn to drive one day, I never want to see you drive like this!"

"It's okay," Rachel said with a slight hint of terror in her voice. She understand that they needed to speed in order to get away from the bad man. "Uncle Gibby's just trying to save us from the bad man!" Gibby had to focus on the road, and nothing else. Fortunately, there was not a whole lot of traffic. Just a bit moderate traffic to pass, and he was staying strictly in the fast lane.

"Sorry!" Gibby shouted each time he passed a car. "Psycho chasing us! Sorry!" Many cars honked, most swerved, several ran into the shoulder for fear of being run over by Jeremy's mad vehicle. "Rachel, I want you to tell me what Jeremy said to you."

"He said he wanted to…" Rachel frowned and looked down, not wanting to remember what the man had told her. She was scared of him and really didn't want to think about him. "He wanted to kill me."

"Okay! Well then, the bad man won't be doing anything to you." Valerie looked at Gibby's speed and nearly fainted, they were almost up to 100 MPH. They had 170 miles total to go. If they went at this rate, they'd reach the college in an hour and forty minutes. "One thing Valerie, if this is where Jonah's at, won't it be _bad_ if Jonah figures it out. Also, are you so willing to let me find out where he's going to school at?"

"For one thing, I trust you not to do anything to him or tell anybody where he's going to college. Secondly, I have a feeling that we might lose Jeremy before then. He was filling up his tank and didn't look like he filled it up very much." Gibby nodded and smiled slightly, he was going to get them to Jonah safely. Valerie knew that she wouldn't be able to stay with Jonah, she wouldn't be able to. Hector would hunt her down, Jeremy would hunt her and her family down, Sam would be diminished to nothing if she wasn't there to look after her in some form. She just wasn't able to stay away from them for good. She sighed and turned to Rachel. "Rachel honey, when we reach your daddy, you know you have to stay with him, okay?"

"What do you mean?"

"I'll tell you later sweetheart." Suddenly a car veered off of the road, Gibby looked back and saw that Jeremy was now resorting to pushing other cars off the highway. This was an unimaginable bout of road rage. He was speeding up, which in turn forced Gibby to speed up. At this point, Gibby was going 120 MPH. Why the hell were there no cops after them yet?

"You would think we'd have cops hot on our tail by now." Then again, the freeways were not often patrolled by police officers. Gibby was severely considering having Jeremy go off the freeway. It was too dangerous for this maniac. By now, Valerie was digging her nails so ferociously in the car seat, that he would probably have to buy some new seat covers. "There is a small gun under my seat, how badly do you think he'd veer out of control if I shot out one of his tires?"

"No guns around Rachel and Derek!"

"Okay, relax…"

"You're driving at 120 MPH and you expect me to _relax?"_

The chase went on for what seemed to be miles, and it was. Jeremy was not calming down, but he was taking notice of his gas light being on and his tank emptying out pretty quickly. What didn't help his case was that Gibby had a full tank of gas, having filled it up the day before. He could make the trip, whereas Jeremy would be out pretty soon. He'd been driving for twenty five minutes so far, and Gibby wasn't slowing down.

"Why the fuck are you making this so damn hard, Gibson. Just slow the hell down and let's talk this out…" What he hadn't expected was for Gibby to make a sudden exit. Jeremy shouted out angrily as he sped by the exit sign and continued down the road. They had gone sixty miles and Jeremy was nearing the end of his tank. "Where the _hell_ are these two going anyway?" The last thing Jeremy saw when Gibby made the exit was Gibby flipping him off.

"One bit of advice kids, never do what Uncle Gibby just did there," Gibby said with a smirk as he quickly slowed down and stopped at a stoplight. He and Valerie both leaned back and sighed. They'd lost Jeremy.

"Good thinking on that quick maneuver," Valerie praised him, smiling ever so slightly. "Please _never_ drive like that again." Gibby laughed and took a look at his GPS. They still had 110 miles to go.

"What do you say we start averaging about 75 MPH?"

"Be lucky I don't force you to do 50 on the freeway!" Gibby smirked as Derek and Rachel stared at each other with bewildered expressions. The light turned green and the group sat there for a minute before starting up. They really had to catch their breath. Gibby then gradually built his speed and got onto the freeway, as though nothing had happened. His car seemed okay after all that, but when they got to Seattle, he wanted to check it to make sure everything _was_ good.

"High speed chases, you have to love them."

"Shut up."

"What do you think, Jeremy's ten miles ahead of us by now?" Gibby was honestly cracking up. If they continued at a calm pace of 75, they should reach their destination in an hour and a half. They had been at the light for five minutes, so assuming Jeremy stayed at his maniac pace the entire time, he would be nearly 12 miles ahead. If he had attempted to slow down, it would put him 10 miles ahead of the group.

Jeremy growled as his engine began sputtering, he really didn't find much area to slam the breaks, he had to slow down gradually. Even still, he remained at constant speeds for a good period of time. It was not long, however, before his speed did break. He started making his way into the shoulder of the road, there wasn't another exit for a very long time, and the sign for the nearest gas station put it as ten miles more. He was screwed every which way. "There goes my plan…"

Jeremy slowly pressed the gas pedal as his car started coming to a complete stop. It wasn't just his gas going out that was the problem, his engine was pretty much shot, as were some other parts of his car. He should have known better than to drive at the speed he had been. Finally his car pulled to a stop, the gas tank being completely empty. He exited his car and shouted in frustration as he kicked the tires. "Damn piece of shit car!"

In Gibby's car, the group decided to pass the time with various fun activities. Valerie would point out some scenic landmarks and on occasion, they would sing fun driving songs. Derek and Rachel would play patty cake and other kid games. Hell, Rachel even was allowed to open some of her birthday presents. When eventually they passed Jeremy, they saw him sitting on the hood of his car with his elbow on his knee and fist to his cheek. When he spotted them, he jumped off of his car and began shaking his fist at them. They only laughed.

"Do you think we should have stopped to help him?" Valerie asked with a slow chuckle. Gibby laughed once and shook his head.

"_Hell_ no."

After a good amount of time, they finally made it to Antioch University in Seattle. Surely Jeremy wasn't smart enough to know they had gone there, nor did they care. There was no way in hell he could show up there. The only way he could go was back home, but chances were likely that they'd be home before he was. He had too much pride to abandon his car.

"Should I drop you off at the University while I check my car out?" There really wasn't a need to do that, since the car shop was pretty close by. It was just a short walking distance to the university. "Is there even any guarantee that he'll be here?"

"He should be. It's only three, and he's got classes until three thirty."

"Okay then."

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I'm sorry for the lateness! I'm going to upload multiple chapters, if you'll review each of em and let me know what you think of the chapter, that'd be great ^_^


	25. Awaited Reunion

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

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Chapter 25 (Awaited Reunion)

Gibby pulled his car into a nearby auto shop and exited the vehicle as a mechanic came up to him. He shook his hand as Valerie and the two kids left the car. The children were complaining about being hungry and Valerie was assuring them that they would be eating very soon. "Hi, I'd like for you to check my car out and make sure it doesn't have any damage," Gibby said with a smile. "Mainly the engine…I should be back in about three hours."

"I can do that for you," the mechanic said as Gibby handed him the keys. Gibby smiled and looked down the street a ways. The college was not as far away as he thought it was. The sad thing was, Valerie didn't know much about Jonah's classes, so it made finding him just a little harder than they thought it would be.

"Thank you." Gibby rubbed the back of his neck as he led the group towards the university. Once on campus, he was pretty sure nobody was going to recognize him. If they did, oh well, who cares. There were people all over the place, so he thought of a good way to figure out where he could ask around. He started trying to ask random people, but kept being ignored. So finally, he grabbed one person and asked them where the café was. "Which way to the café?"

"Um…it's in that building over there," the girl asked while pointing to a tall building.

"Thanks." Valerie rolled her eyes and smiled as the group made their way to the café. Once there, Gibby stepped onto a table and cupped his hands over his mouth. "Anyone in here know where I can find Jonah Brown! Tell me or I beat up the guy in the leather jacket." He casually pointed to a student sitting down who looked up at him in bewilderment. Why attack him? What had he done? Several of the students couldn't answer, but one person seemed to know where he was.

"I think his class is in the room right next to the library!" Gibby nodded and the group began searching the campus for the library. Once they found it, they started searching any of the nearby rooms. Valerie looked into one window and smiled, she could see Jonah, writing his notes and listening to the teacher. Her heart started pounding heavily in her chest and her body began to grow in warmth.

"It's him," Valerie said as her eyes traced over his every feature. His firm jawline, his beautifully toned muscles, his wonderfully shaped shoulders, everything about him just took her breath away. Gibby walked over and smiled, happy to have finally found Jonah somewhere. Valerie was almost afraid to disturb his class. She hadn't seen him in nearly four years, and god she wanted to feel him. She wiped her eyes as she lifted Rachel up to look into the window. "Do you see that man, Rachel? The man in the black t-shirt and the black jeans…he's in the very front row."

"I see him mommy," Rachel replied as her eyes set upon Jonah. Valerie was shaking horribly, she wanted desperately to be with him. "Is that Daddy?"

"Yes. Yes that is your father."

"Okay, are you going to just sit there or are you going to go in?" Gibby asked while crossing his arms. Derek was the only one not really sure whether to be patient or impatient, he just wanted Rachel to meet her dad.

"Shh, I don't want to interrupt his class."

"Oh come on! Four years and you're worried about disturbing the man's _class_? Jeez, maybe I should have hung around to make sure…" Thinking fast about Rachel, he stopped himself. He knew Valerie would know he wasn't serious about stating he should have hung around to make sure Jonah was dead if all she was going to be worried about was his class, but Rachel wouldn't understand that. He sighed deeply and looked at a clock, were they really going to stand around for twenty minutes? "Hell no…Half that class already notices you at the door anyway…I'm opening it."

"Gibby no!" It was too late, and she was too nervous. Gibby had opened the door and knocked hard on it. The professor stopped his speaking and put his glasses down, wondering who the hell had decided to interrupt his lecture. Jonah looked over and his eyes widened when he saw Valerie. He slowly stood up from his desk as she smiled sheepishly.

"V-Valerie?" Jonah asked as he shook his head and did a double take. It couldn't be. What on earth was she doing here? The professor gave him a look and he quickly raised his hand up. "Forgive me professor, but I'm going to have to…uh…step out for a moment." He noticed Rachel and smiled, judging by how much like Valerie she looked, he knew she had to be his daughter. She clutched Valerie's shirt nervously as Jonah slowly walked towards them, smiling happily. "Hello, I'm your father."

"What, nothing for me?" Gibby asked with a smirk. Jonah tried to ignore him, considering Gibby's presence merely brought on flashbacks of the day he nearly died.

"Yeah, the last person I want to see right now."

"No actually that should be Jeremy. Come on out here and stop holding up the class. Lord knows you don't want to disturb the class, right?" Gibby winked at Valerie as he quickly pushed Jonah out of the classroom.

"Daddy?" Rachel asked as she held out her arms. She could feel a connection to him, there was no doubt about it that he was her father. Jonah smiled and held her in his arms, it felt so good to finally be able to hold his own daughter. He looked down at Derek and raised his eyebrow, wondering who the kid was. He resembled Sam in some ways. "That's Miss Sam's son. Derek."

"What?" Jonah looked up at Valerie as she mouthed the R word, she didn't want Rachel knowing about it. Jonah understood that she meant Hector was the father.

"Sam had twins, and she's pregnant again," Valerie muttered under her breath.

"You're not serious…Okay, so why are you here, and with Gibby? Don't you know that could get both you and me killed?"

"It's either risk that or risk losing my baby…Jeremy went crazy. I knew I had to bring Rachel to you, she wasn't safe with me. Derek too, since he went along for the ride."

"What about you? Are you…" Valerie closed her eyes and slowly shook her head, she knew he'd want her to stay, but she couldn't.

"If I stayed with you, Hector or Jeremy would try to track me down. Jeremy would kill me, and my family…then you…"

"You don't think Gibby would do that?" Jonah knew Gibby had been protecting her, but he didn't know to what extent. Gibby shrugged and looked away, not really bothering with this discussion.

"What? I don't know where you go to college," Gibby said with a slight smirk, letting Jonah know he didn't care and wouldn't tell anyone a single thing. "I think it's best you get these children to safety. We left Jeremy somewhere along the freeway."

"What?" Jonah's face fell for a minute as he tried to put two and two together. It looked like they might have just gotten out of a chase, and if that were the case, then he was glad Valerie made it to him. "Can I…" He looked at Valerie and took a slight step forward. "Can I hold you? Please?" Rachel blinked and looked down at Derek, she had a feeling she was about to learn what a sandwich feels like.

"I would love that," Valerie said with a smile. She grabbed the sides of Jonah's shirt and pulled him close, pressing her body against Rachel and wrapping he arms around both. Rachel grinned happily and hugged her father as Jonah wrapped his arms around Valerie. Valerie sighed softly and closed her eyes, it felt so good to be in his arms. "I'm sorry that I can't stay with you…God I miss your touch."

"I miss your love."

"I love you so much Jonah. It hurts too much to be away from you."

"I can keep you safe…"

"Nobody keeps Sam safe, I have to be there for her too." Jonah smiled tearfully and nodded his head. They moved their heads closer and rubbed their noses together, joining their foreheads and gazing into each other's eyes. Gibby rolled his eyes at the mushiness and looked over at the classroom door, it seemed several people had decided to watch the couple. Gibby made a dangerous move towards them and glared.

"What are you looking at?" Gibby asked with a growl. The students in the door quickly moved back to their desks. They didn't think Gibby looked like someone they wanted to mess with. He had gained some pretty good muscles during the years, with all the fighting between him and Gibby.

"Valerie, would you see your family before you go?" Valerie frowned and looked into Jonah's eyes. She knew how worried they must be, how afraid they must feel that she was dead. She wanted to know how they were faring. "You don't know how much it would mean to them…if they could just see your face." Jonah smiled and gently kissed her forehead, then gazed into her loving eyes. "As greedy as I want to be in this quickly passing time, I know it wouldn't be right if I was the only one that got to be with you."

"I'll do so if Gibby doesn't mind waiting around here."

"Where else can I go?" Gibby asked while shrugging his shoulders and leaning against the wall. "My car's in the shop for a few hours. I got time to kill." He knew Jonah wouldn't trust him enough to know where both the Brown family and the Williams family was hidden. Hell, if he were in Jonah's shoes, he wouldn't trust himself either. "Go have fun, but don't try anything funny Jonah."

"I'll have her back by six, is that okay?"

"Eh, I don't know…I just don't trust you."

"Valerie herself says she can't stay, I'm not going to argue with her Gibby." Valerie smiled and looked over at Gibby.

"I'll be back by six!" Gibby looked wistfully outside a nearby window. He hadn't been around Seattle in ages. He missed the old town, dare he admit it.

"Eh, make it seven, I don't mind you pushing it up to 7:30, but no later." Valerie giggled and nodded her head, it sounded like a plan. "If you're later, you know I'll be able to find you guys."

"Of course…" The college was bound to have Jonah's real address on file, so it wouldn't be difficult for him to find Jonah if he really wanted to.

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Haha, you have to love how Gibby is. Jonah finally gets to see his daughter and Valerie! Next chapter is awesome as well.


	26. Rachel's Big Family

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 26 (Rachel's Big Family)

Jonah drove towards the small town of Index with Valerie in the passenger seat and the two children in the back. She knew she was asking a lot for Jonah to take the two children in, but they had nowhere else to go, and Rachel needed her father. She needed to see a good father. "So won't you get in trouble with Hector for all this?"

"No, Gibby's going to explain the situation to him, but we're not planning on telling him we ran into you. That would just infuriate him, and possibly Jeremy if he caught wind." Who was she kidding? It would piss Jeremy off. It would piss him off so much that she'd never hear the end of it. "Either way, I don't want to talk about that." Jonah nodded and smiled as he placed his hand on hers, it felt so good to have her with him, even though it was just temporary. "Did you know Hector's actually sent me to school and college? I'm going to be a great culinary chef one day!"

"That's amazing, Valerie." Valerie kept seeing Jonah glance in the rearview mirror at Rachel, she smiled and closed her eyes. She loved how happy he was to see his daughter, to be able to actually have her with him. Currently Rachel and Derek were passing away the time by having their own conversation and playing car games that little kids play. "Jeremy…he's never liked you?"

"No, because Gibby and Hector both treat me differently to a point…He hates my daughter too…" Jonah frowned and narrowed his eyes. Jeremy wouldn't do anything more to Rachel now, he would guarantee it. Derek would be safe too, if he was in any danger. "It is good to see you again, Jonah."

"Yeah, so why can't you stay with me?"

"You know why." Jonah frowned and turned his gaze downward, he hated that he couldn't have her with him. However she was right, it would be dangerous for everyone if she just left without word. Though, he wished he could be with her. He wished he could be there to keep Jeremy from harming her in any way. What he wouldn't give to kick that son of a bitch's ass.

"I just want to protect you, to hold you when you need me. To be there when you need someone to be there…You don't know what this is doing to me."

"I understand. It's killing everyone, believe me." Valerie looked out of her window as they passed a sign stating they've entered the small town of Index. "I love the mountains."

"Index is located in a beautiful spot." Valerie nodded and tilted her head back. She closed her eyes and breathed in as she thought about where her life was going. She wondered how her family was doing. Evidently Jonah brought them here, he never told her, but it was for good reason. "Your mother misses you just as much as all of your sisters."

"They probably think I'm dead, don't they…"

"No, they keep believing you're out there." Valerie smiled, happy that her family still had the hope and faith that she was alive. Jonah didn't feel too good that he'd have to hand her back to Gibby, but from what she had told him, Gibby treated her like a sister. So it was better Gibby than any of the other men, and Jonah was thankful that the guy was keeping her safe. "They're going to flip when they see you today."

"It breaks my heart to have to leave them again, though…" Jonah slowly nodded his head as he parked in front of the Williams residence. Valerie wondered if anything changed about her family. Nearly four years, one would think there'd be a lot different about them. Her youngest sister would have to be almost fourteen years old now. "Rachel, are you ready to meet your grandparents and Aunts?" Rachel gasped happily and raised her head up. Her father, grandparents, and aunts all in one day? This was turning out to be the best birthday _ever_.

"Yeah!" Jonah had parked to the driveway, which was on the right side of the front yard. Valerie had to look across him to see the yard, which seemed very nicely kept. She could see Vixen and Victoria in the yard, Victoria was watching Vixen perform her newest dance.

"Hey look, it's Jonah!" Vixen pointed out as she stopped her dancing. Victoria looked over and smiled, but they couldn't see Valerie too well.

"Who's in the car with him?" Victoria asked while rubbing her chin. Tears were coming to Valerie's eyes, her little sisters seemed like they were really growing up. Victoria must have her license by now, or at least her permit. Rachel looked at the two and Derek nudged Valerie.

"Who are they?" Derek asked with a quiet voice. Valerie sniffed as Jonah eyed her with a smile, gauging her reaction at seeing her sisters.

"Rachel, these are two of your aunts," Valerie said while wiping her eyes. "Aunt Vixen and Aunt Victoria…" Rachel grinned from ear to ear as she opened her door and exited with Derek.

"Uh oh, he brought kids with him," Victoria said with a slight laugh. Vixen gasped, seeing Valerie first as both Jonah and Valerie exited the car. She tugged on Victoria's sleeve and pointed. Her sister raised her eyebrow and looked over, her jaw fell in shock. "V-V-V-_Valerie?_ Oh my god, it's Val!" Valerie smiled softly and walked around the car, her two sisters were too shocked for words.

The front door opened and Veronica stepped out, she was washing a plate with a rag. "Hey, you two need to do your chores now, no slacking off!" Veronica called out. Valerie looked at her and cupped her hand over her mouth, Veronica was so beautiful. She would be graduating high school this year and turning eighteen in August. Knowing Vanessa, she was already twenty-two, as January passed already. "What are you two st-" Vanessa looked over and froze when she saw Valerie. Her body began to shake and the plate she held in her hands fell to the floor. Tears left her eyes as she quickly ran back into the house. "Mom! Vanessa! Get dad from the backyard, quickly!"

Vincent was in the backyard chopping some wood for the fireplace, they usually had the fireplace lit up while they had family night. It was something they did every day. Jonah chuckled lightly and placed his arm around Valerie's waist. Rachel lifted one arm and grasped her mom's pants tightly, she was very nervous now. "Who was that lady, mommy?"

"Your Aunt Veronica…she should be starting college soon."

"She's planning to go to Antioch," Jonah said as he clicked the button on his keys to lock the door. "She's heard some good things about it from me, so she wants to get started there. She always says she wants to go into modeling." Jonah walked towards the girls in the yard and scratched his head, wondering how long they were all going to stare at each other. "You do know nobody has all day, right?"

"Valerie, is that really you?" Vixen said as she walked towards her. Valerie nodded tearfully and Vixen quickly hugged her. "Oh god, we didn't know if we'd ever see you again!"

"I'm here now." Valerie looked over to see Vincent and Vanessa follow Veronica out the front door. They smiled at her, trying to first overcome the shock. Valerie walked to the three and smiled sadly, tears dripping past her chin. "Dad…"

"Valerie, where have you been," Vincent said as he hugged his daughter, holding her tightly. "Your mom's been worried sick."

"How is she?"

"Doing a lot better now," Jonah stated as Viola came out of the house. She was walking on crutches. Valerie gasped as Viola looked over at her, she thought it was too good to be true.

"Valerie…oh god it really is you." Valerie smiled and hugged her mother gently, not wanting to squeeze her too hard. She was surprised to see her mom on crutches, rather than the wheelchair. What had she been missing. She took a step back and eyed her mother carefully. Viola closed her eyes and smiled happily. "We found a good doctor who's able to operate. So through operations and rehabilitation, I'm regaining my ability to walk!"

"Oh mom, I'm so happy to hear that!"

"We're all happy about it," Vanessa said with a soft smile. She looked to Rachel, who was a bit scared of all the people. Derek didn't seem bothered at all by the group. His main issue was that he actually missed Adam. He knew that he, like Rachel, probably wouldn't be seeing Adam again for a while. "So who is this little one?" Vanessa knelt in front of Rachel and the girl quickly hid behind her mother. "She's shy."

"This is my daughter." Vincent and Viola smiled as the girls all surrounded them. Valerie leaned over and picked Rachel up. The girl wrapped her arms securely around her mother's neck and gazed curiously at the group. "Rachel, say hello."

"Hi," Rachel meekly responded. "I'm Rachel, and this is my mommy, and that's my daddy." Rachel pointed at Jonah and he beamed with pride. There was just something about hearing a child refer to him as a dad that sent him spiraling into pure joy.

"Well, I'm your mother's big sister, Aunt Vanessa."

"You're mommy's older sister? She told me lots about you." Vanessa stood straight and smirked lightly.

"Well I don't know what she may have told you, but I can almost guarantee it isn't half as good as getting to know me." Rachel smiled as Vanessa started pointing to her sisters. "Now from oldest to youngest, you have your Aunts Veronica, Victoria, and Vixen. These two over here…" Rachel watched as Vanessa stepped behind her parents and put her arms around their shoulders. "Are your grandparents…Grandpa Vincent and Grandma Viola."

"Just wait till you meet Aunt Olivia and your grandfather on my side of the family," Jonah said while crossing his arms over. Rachel blinked and looked at him with a smile. She was really enjoying the attention.

"She's adorable," Viola said as she walked to Rachel. Valerie put her daughter down and Rachel went on to hug each member of the family.

"She looks just you," Veronica commented while smiling at her sister. "So…are you here to stay?" Valerie frowned and bowed her head, this was what she hated. Jonah sighed and closed his eyes, he knew this wasn't going to be good.

"Rachel is, and so is Derek. He's Sam's son…one of the twins." Valerie's family looked at her with confusion, why was she not staying with them? "I can't, it would put too many lives in jeopardy. I have to go back into captivity, or Jeremy will find me and kill me, then probably go after all of you…"

"Jeremy?" Vincent asked with a slow growl. He recognized that name. He hated that man, he hated that man with a burning passion.

"Yes, Gibby and I saved Rachel and Derek from him. Gibby's in Seattle right now, getting his car fixed. I promised him I'd be back."

"And this Gibby…is he protecting you?"

"Very much so! I don't know when I'm going to be free from them, I don't know what's going to happen, but as long as Gibby's protecting me from Jeremy, I will be fine." Vanessa smiled very sadly, she hated to see her sister leave, but was grateful that she was able to stop by and see them. She understood Valerie's concern, and she wasn't about to argue it.

"After what happened to us four years ago, I can see why you would worry about leaving so suddenly," Vanessa commented. Victoria groaned and felt of her hair, she _still_ hated water. Vanessa continued college at Seattle University, but ever since that incident, she and the dean would meet _outside_ of his office. Vixen never let what happened affect her too much. She still had memories, but she tried to push them off as much as possible.

"No kidding," Vincent said as he placed his hand on his side. Valerie looked over at him with a look of concern. Sometimes he still felt the pain of that blow, and any loud noise still affected him. "I still have a massive scar. Was it that _Jeremy_ who orchestrated all of that?"

"Yes, but what exactly happened to you guys?"

"That you don't need to worry about," Jonah replied quickly as he stepped next to Valerie. Valerie chuckled nervously as her family shook their heads. Not only did they _not_ want to talk about it, they didn't want to remember it or worry Valerie with all that crap. Hell, Vincent had to have his office moved to another floor. "Anyway, I just called my dad, he's coming over here as soon as he and grandpa get George to wake up."

"Your dad's coming over?"

"Yeah, it shouldn't be too long, we live like right down the street."

"Huh…small town…" Everyone laughed and Jonah rubbed Valerie's back.

"You have _no__idea_."

It wasn't long at all before Jonah's family did indeed make it over there, hell they drove despite really not having to drive. It was just that George was with them, so it was better to drive. Rachel glanced over at them as Michael, Olivia, Ryan, and George left the car. "Who are they?"

"Your grandfather, great grandfather, great-great grandfather, and your Aunt Olivia." Valerie chuckled as Rachel tilted her head curiously, not really sure what to make of the three grandfathers. She thought there was only one grandfather on either side. Michael smiled at the young girl and looked over at Jonah.

"She has your eyes, son." Olivia smiled and walked over to Rachel, who wasn't backing away this time.

"Hi, I'm your auntie Olivia. We're going to have a lot of fun together!" She had been waiting for this day to come so she could start spoiling the little girl as soon as possible. George placed his hands in his lap and chuckled to himself, he never thought he'd live to see his great-great grandchild.

"Do I have a Grandma?" Michael frowned and picked up Rachel, he was very happy to see his granddaughter.

"Your grandmother is very likely the one who kept you and your mother safe, and the one that kept your parents family safe…watching us all from the skies and living on in our hearts." Rachel eyes widened with wonder as she looked up into the sky. Her grandmother was somewhere up there?

"Wow, she must be pretty." Michael smiled and closed his eyes, nodding in response.

"She was very pretty."

Everybody spent hours catching up and enjoying their time together, but it all seemed too swift and the time came for Valerie to have to leave. She was torn, but it was something she had to do. Arrangements were made for Rachel to live with Jonah, but it was fine that she was right down the street from her mother's family. Derek would also stay with Jonah for the time being. He didn't know if he was going to give Derek to his grandmother or not, since he didn't even know how to contact Amy right now.

After a very teary goodbye, Jonah drove Valerie back to Seattle, where Gibby was waiting for them at the auto shop. He was respectful enough to let them have some time with each other before getting on the road. It took them almost forever, never wanting to let go of each other, but knowing they had to. Eventually Valerie was leaving, looking back as Jonah waved and faded into the distance. Rachel stood at his side, grasping his jeans.

"You talked to Hector?" Valerie asked quietly. Gibby nodded and pressed his lips together. The conversation hadn't gone badly at all, but damn he was worried.

"He said he's not too thrilled with what we did, and he doesn't know if it was wise to give up Rachel and Derek just because of Jeremy, but he is really pissed off at him. Evidently Jeremy's not _quite_ back yet."

"Oh dear, I hope he's not still stuck on the freeway." Gibby chuckled and shrugged his shoulders. Hector told him that when he called Jeremy up, the boy was walking ten miles to the nearest gas station. Who knew how long it would take him to get everything fixed.

"He'll get back when he does, and when he does get home…I'll make sure he doesn't do anything to you."

"Thank you Gibby." Gibby shrugged as he pulled onto the freeway.

"How was your visit with your family?"

"Perfect…and I think we made Rachel really happy too. How was your trip around Seattle?" Gibby chuckled nervously and grinned, he had plenty of time to revisit some of his old haunts. He just wondered if anyone saw him and thought he was a ghost.

"I had a lot of fun. We should thank Jeremy for this unexpected road trip he made us go on." The two laughed as they sped down the road. After a while, they were sure they just passed Jeremy slowly driving his car in the shoulder. Yeah, he wasn't making it back to Portland anytime soon.

* * *

Review the three, and prepare for the next.


	27. Time Marches On

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 27 (Time Marches On)

Freddie sat in his journalism class, biting his eraser. He was the editor on the college newspaper, and this course was yet another of his degree plan classes. The reason he was chewing his eraser, he was bored as hell. He sighed as he started writing down his assignment. The teacher wanted them to this time not type their essay on computers, then check the paper. They might find that it was actually easier on paper than it was typing. This was the goal the teacher wanted.

Freddie had two more years before he would nab his bachelors, then he was headed for a major. He was getting better with his writing and English as he went along, he was also getting better with noticing the smaller things in films. As far as his writing went, it was Hector that helped him to progress. Hector, and Carly would both take his writing, proofread it, and send it back to him with their changes. It would be up to him to utilize and make it better.

Carly sat in her actor's chair as fans started snapping photos. She, too, was headed to college. She was taking film and acting classes, participating in school plays, and doing a number of community jobs. She actually enjoyed, in her spare time, going rock climbing. She absolutely loved war films and visiting old battlegrounds. Her favorite war item to use, aside from the guns, were the grenades. She loved explosives. Her director had begun to utilize this when he cast her in roles, putting her in some war movies as well as minor action roles. She was well on her way to becoming a major actor.

Carly had actually been in films with stars like Bruce Willis, Jackie Chan, and even Steven Segal. She loved it, craving every single minute of it. Although, in those films, she really hadn't played in anything major just yet. She was tired of the small roles, and even her director had bigger, better things in mind for her. He wanted the day to come when she would be able to play second to a big star, and maybe star in her _own_ movie. She was almost a perfect action star, as she had researched everything and was so into her roles.

Freddie and Carly looked at the clocks on the wall, both waiting to head elsewhere. Freddie wanted to meet up with his best friend, Jake, and shoot some pool. Carly desired to get away from this mob of fans and paparazzi, they wanted to know a secret she was hiding. She was a new, up and coming star, so she was considered 'fresh meat.' She pressed her lips together and placed her hand on her stomach, narrowing her eyes slightly. She actually had an argument with her director, and even Freddie was a tad upset with her, she was pregnant. This was a _bad_ thing for a new star to do when they weren't married.

Freddie attempted to date at least once, but it didn't last longer than one date. He and the prospective date had gone to a nearby diner, and halfway through, Freddie said he didn't want to continue to date. He _still_ hadn't moved on from Sam. Even Carly, who had several friends, had one that was extremely close to her and _still_ no one was as close as she had been to Sam. Finally their break came in a few moments. Freddie's class ended and Carly's director came and pulled her away from the fans and paparazzi.

"You know, one thing I want to make sure you never do," Carly said as she walked with her director. "Put me in a role like those twilight films." The director chuckled and shook his head, he wouldn't end up doing that.

Freddie hurried from his classroom and met up with Jake in the college café. Jake greeted him with a high five and sat down at the table. "So what did they have you do today?"

"Well aside from an essay in my journalism class, we rated a film in my film classes." Jake nodded and leaned back as Freddie continued on. "It was a twilight film, I rated it with a C minus."

"Whoa, that's pretty damn harsh man."

"Well I just didn't like the characterizations and…" Jake knew he needed to stop his friend soon, or Freddie would go on rambling on and on. He quickly silenced Freddie and pointed to a girl walking by.

"Hey there's a hot chick right there." Freddie looked over and shrugged, he didn't really care. Jake looked over and sighed, rolling his eyes momentarily. Of course, he should have remembered not to try and get Freddie's attention in that way. "So tell me what your old man's up to" Henry was now the Deputy Police Chief, and in the next few years he planned to become the police chief of Seattle.

"He wants to reform the entire city, maybe even the state." Freddie laughed and tapped his fingers anxiously on the table. "If you ask me, I think he may just do that. He wants to reopen the investigation of Sam's disappearance."

"I think that's a very good idea." Jake remembered Sam, he often wondered what ever happened to them. Her abduction was so swift and the police closed it even quicker than it happened. The media never covered it either, so it had been forgotten. "And what of Carly?"

"Oh, I think I was supposed to call her…"

Carly made her way to her dressing room and sighed as she sat in front of her vanity mirror and tapped the wood oak. Wasn't Freddie supposed to be calling her? She frowned and flipped open her phone. Nope, he hadn't contacted her yet. She frowned and clicked the number five button, speed-dialing Freddie. Freddie quickly answered it's phone once it began ringing, chuckling slightly. "Hey Freddie, how were classes?"

"Not bad, and how was your brush with fans?"

"I'd rather not discuss that." Freddie laughed as Carly shuddered slightly. "Geez, I'm just glad they don't know I'm pregnant. You know I'm marrying too?"

"No, I didn't know that."

"Nobody is supposed to know it. The man's name is Frank, Frank Sade. I love him, he's awesome!" Freddie chuckled and gave a slight nod, she had told him about the man. He was happy that she found someone. "Unfortunately since the wedding's private, nobody's allowed to it."

"That's fine, I just hope you have a happy life with him."

"Thank you. You know, I'm going to have a little girl. I think I'll name her Cara. I think it's a beautiful name." Freddie gave a nod of his head and continued to speak about his day.

Elsewhere, Victor Oswin sat next to his pregnant wife, she would be having a son very soon now. He was happy to be a father. He hoped to raise the child very well. He actually felt somewhat bad that he was supporting Hector holding his own daughter hostage, but he didn't really care anymore. As far as he was concerned, Hector needed him. He was far too stupid to do anything on his own. The dumbass had already drunkenly impregnated his daughter. What more could this stupid fool do?

No, at least Hector was smart enough to know to keep Freddie close by building up Freddie's wealth and keeping a close eye on him. One was supposed to keep their enemies close.

"Victor. Our first child," Mrs. Oswin said as she placed her hand on her belly. She was looking forward to this. They'd been married for years but never once had a child, it was something they had put off for a very long time.

"I believe I will be very proud of how this child grows." Yes, time had continued to march on for everybody. It was a sad fact, but everyone had to face the fact that there was no turning back the clock, no going back in time. It could only progress, but any little factor could change the course of time itself, perhaps.

As Freddie droned on with his studies, and Carly grew in her success as an actor, and Henry dreamed of being at the top, nobody could shake the fact that the past did still haunt them. As much as they wished they could go back, that they could stop Sam's abduction, they knew it wasn't likely. Carly and Freddie could only hope to keep digging further and further. They stopped suspecting Hector long ago and moved on. They were trying to trace the footsteps of everybody that had vanished. The only thing they knew might be of any consideration was a recent story on the news of a high speed chase, two drivers who had never been caught for going over 100 on the freeways. When a witness described the driver of the black vehicle, they knew instantly that it was Jeremy. Witnesses later reported seeing him stuck on the freeway. He then vanished once again, just as mysteriously as he appeared.

Then, at the height of their hunt, finals came, and Carly had a new role to rehearse for. It became harder and harder to find Sam as their schedule filled up more and more. Time marches on.

* * *

Yes indeed, time does march on. The reason I focused so much on Jonah and Valerie is because in order to get where I am in the story I have to not only explain what Jonah was doing all this time, but also how and where Freddie got to where he is. Unfortunately, I can't make Freddie have the fervor that Jonah has, otherwise he might get to her and realize it's Hector all too quickly. So, for Carly and Freddie, for everybody, time does march on. I wrote that last paragraph, to make it seem almost a ghostly mention of Jeremy in Freddie's mind.


	28. A Brother's Resolve

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N: This is the chapter we discover the mystery behind Sam's firstborn in PB

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Chapter 28 (A Brother's Resolve)

Two years would pass before anything of significance happened for anybody. At twenty two, Freddie and Carly would be finishing their undergraduate years and Carly was already starting to see her name in lights. Jeremy, Gibby, and Nevel did all they could to actually be decent fathers for their sons, but it had become increasingly harder to have family lives while with Hector. Hector started putting Sam in basic padded rooms, keeping her separate from her daughter, who had no name. Sam had named her, but nobody ever called the little girl by that name.

Sam would sit in her cell, listening to her daughter's cries from the next room. The girl wanted her mother, but never got the opportunity to be with her but on rare occasions. It was Jeremy that finally pulled Adam from Sylvia, now the older brother stayed with his little sister in her cell, protecting her any way he could. He was five years old now, and he desperately missed Derek and Rachel. Valerie would often tell him, along with Sam, how Rachel and Derek were adjusting with Jonah. They were happy as could be.

Amy Puckett actually got to see her grandson, no one was sure how it happened, but Jonah found a way to bring Derek to her. She had started taking care of him. Rachel brought joy to Valerie's family, giving them comfort and hope wherever needed. That was the middle name she had been given, 'Hope'. She was her mother's hero, her father's pride and joy. As far as Valerie went, she was growing tired of being under Hector, tired of being afraid of Jeremy, and tired of never seeing her family and not seeing her little baby grow up.

"Tell me more mommy," the little girl said as she sat on the cold floor in the cell next to her mother's. Sam was telling her stories of iCarly and of Freddie, the only man she still loved, if he knew she was still alive. Adam smiled as he lay on the floor, kicking his feet into the air.

"He would hold me so tenderly," Sam mused as she held her arms and closed her eyes, smiling subtly. She was afraid of a man's touch now, any man. If she ever saw Freddie again, it would take a long time before she could let him touch her in any intimate way. "I loved him, I still do."

"Where is he now, mommy?" Sam bit her lip and moved her eyes towards the ground. She wished she could know, she really did want to know. God how she yearned for his embrace.

"I don't know, sweetheart. I don't know." Suddenly the basement door was heard and Sam closed her eyes. She knew what was coming, she could hear his footsteps. The one that seemed to hate her the most out of everybody. She'd become accustomed to how she was treated, so much so that she did not cry anymore. Her cell door opened violently and Jeremy stepped in. "Hello Jeremy…" He looked pissed off about something, what had Gibby done this time. She smirked tauntingly and tilted her head. Though, the fire that used to be in her eyes was long gone. "Did Valerie piss you off again and Gibby defend her…again?"

"Shut up," Jeremy muttered as he slammed the door shut. Adam frowned as he pulled his little sister into the corner and held her, he knew what was coming. His baby sis didn't know too much, but she did know that bad people hurt her mom. Jeremy's eyes drifted to the small rectangular window separating the two cells. "I don't know why Hector even wants them alive. He doesn't like the girl, and he definitely doesn't like the boy. If I had my way…"

"You would do nothing!" Sam spat at him and quickly rose, she may be broken but when it came to her children, she still defended them no matter what. Jeremy raised his eyebrow at the defiance and growled, he _hated_ when she or Valerie acted in such ways. He backhanded her and she shouted out in pain. Her daughter's eyes widened as she cuddled close to her brother.

"How _dare_ you think you can backtalk me!"

"I would sooner kill you myself than let you touch my children." Jeremy laughed and crossed his arms. He would like to see Sam try and kill him.

"I'm sorry, was that a threat? You're in no position to threaten…" Jeremy grabbed her shoulders tightly and slammed her into the wall. She yelled in pain as he clenched his fist and hit her in the chest. "You see, I can destroy you in an instant, just like your pathetic little children."

"Why are you doing this?"

"I do it, because I _can_. I deserve it!" Suddenly a shrill scream rang through the air, the daughter was crying. Jeremy growled and walked over to the wall, pounding it with his fist. "Quiet in there! Now!" Sam panted lightly, her chest heaving and her eyes glaring at Jeremy. The daughter continued screaming. "You don't want me coming in there!"

"You won't hurt them…" Jeremy looked back in time to see Sam rush him and hit him in the face. He shouted as he fell to the ground. He held his hand over his nose and slowly rose. Pulling his hand away, he saw blood. Sam's eyes widened as he stared at the blood, she had broken his nose.

"Y-You…_bitch!_ You bitch! You're going to pay for this!" He grabbed Sam and threw her to the ground. She whimpered as he started kicking her several times. She screamed in pain as her daughter continued to cry. Finally reaching the peak of his frustration, he left her cell and slammed the door of the two children open. Sam lay on the ground, unable to move. She was halfway into unconsciousness. Adam slowly rose and stepped in front of his sister, puffing his chest out. "Give me the girl."

"No," Adam responded, protecting his little sister. Jeremy growled violently and stepped forward. Adam wasn't moving. He was blocking any access to his sister, who was curled up in the corner. "I won't let you hurt her."

"You have no choice, give me the girl. I'm not asking you, I am ordering you, and children should obey their elders."

"No! Mommy says children obey their elders when they deserve to be obeyed. You're mean, you hurt mommy, you don't deserve anything, and I'm not letting you hurt my sister!" Jeremy growled, his anger and rage increasing even more. Adam narrowed his eyes and closed his fists as his sister closed her eyes fearfully. "I am not letting you near her."

"If you don't, then you will take her punishment. Do you really want that?" Sam moaned from her room, trying to call out to her children, but she couldn't say anything. Jeremy had beaten her far too badly. She struggled to push herself up, spilling blood from her mouth.

"Again, I am not letting you hurt my sister." Jeremy blinked, his eyes fully open. He was stunned at this boy's resolve. He sighed and crossed his arms, smiling softly.

"Fine…I'm impressed, but that doesn't make the punishment any less. I won't inflict anything on your sister."

"Thank you." Jeremy narrowed his eyes evilly as Sam's adrenaline continued to try and spike up. She ignored her wounds and stood up, staggering and limping to her door. She started slamming into it with her shoulder, trying to open the door.

"You'll do just nicely." Adam yelped as Jeremy grabbed his arm and jerked him over. The girl's eyes widened as she watched her brother being pulled from the cell. The door slammed shut and Sam called out for her son. "Ignore her." Adam didn't speak, he didn't cry, he was willing to sacrifice anything for his sister. Though at just five years of age, he didn't understand perfectly what that meant. All he knew was he was defending her. When the basement door slammed shut, Sam slid to the floor, her eyes wide and her face pale. She'd lost her son, she knew it. He was gone.

Jeremy led the boy to the living room and threw him against the wall. Adam grunted and held his shoulder, biting his lip as the tears broke his eyes. Jeremy was the only one in the house, everyone else was gone. Nevel wanted to be with his girlfriend so badly that Hector had no choice but to let him go. Hector was in Arkansas, picking up a manuscript sent to one of his workers, Amelia Rann. Gibby and Valerie were out on their daily breaks. In the two years, they had moved a little closer to Seattle, but just near the outskirts.

"You should have let your sister suffer the penalty."

"No, she didn't do anything!" Jeremy hated when people back-talked him, especially children. Hell, he never wanted to be a father himself, which was probably why he never cared for his own son.

"You know, I never did care for you. You're the spawn of Satan, anyway. I'm going to take care of you once and for all." Adam swallowed hard as Jeremy grabbed him and pulled him out the door. He threw Adam into his car, then got in and locked the doors. Screaming, Adam slammed his hands on the window while Jeremy nonchalantly started up the car and sped off. "This is what you get, boy."

"Let me go!"

"Oh I _plan_ on it. Now sit down and shut up!" Adam quieted and sat down, his mind wandering to the possibilities of what would have happened to his brother if Valerie and Gibby hadn't saved him. He watched out the window and frowned, Jeremy was driving into an area with no residents, no civilization to be heard of. What was going to happen to him out here?

"What are you doing, evil man?"

"Getting rid of you…" Jeremy parked his car somewhere on a desolate, unknown road and exited. He opened the door and Adam started trying to move to the other side. He shouted out as Jeremy grabbed his ankle and pulled him from the car. He grabbed Adam's neck and tightened his grip, glaring angrily into the boy's eyes. "This is what you wanted, remember? Don't worry, maybe your sister will join you here one day."

"You're a mean man." Jeremy roared and threw Adam on the ground. Adam yelled out and grabbed his leg, he landed pretty hard on it. What was it that caused this transformation in Jeremy? Nobody was sure exactly the reason behind his insanity. "What man would hurt a child…"

"Shut up. Nobody cares about you. You were never loved, do you know that? Here's a secret for you…" Jeremy leaned forward and Adam stared at him with fear. "Your mother was raped by her own father and then impregnated by him. Do you know what that means? It means she was attacked by him, abused, and forced to give birth to you."

"What…" Tears formed in Adam's eyes as Jeremy smirked evilly, he was going to crush this kid in so many ways, like he had not been able to do with the other children.

"That's right, you gave your mother nine months of pain that she never even wanted."

"Mommy didn't want me?"

"No, and neither did your father, or is that grandfather? He did something that no man should ever do to his daughter, he shattered those paternal bonds. Now you're out here on the curb, and what did your mom do to protect you? Nothing."

"No! You lie! Mommy did love me, she did want me!"

"Well where's your mommy _now_, kid?" Adam bowed his head as Jeremy started to climb into his car. He'd had enough fun now. He started up the car and sped off, leaving Adam in tears.

"Mommy _did_ want me..." Adam slowly crawled off the street, realizing that he couldn't walk since his leg hurt too much. He tried not to sob, but couldn't help it. At least, maybe, his sister was safe. He wasn't bleeding, he couldn't walk, nobody seemed to drive on this road, so what was going to happen to him now? He crawled too far and started slipping down a hill, losing his grasp and hitting a few rocks. His body landed at the bottom of the hill, halfway in a creek.

Moaning, he stared up at the clouds in the sky. They were so beautiful, the sky was perfect. He smiled softly and wiped his eyes. His limbs were in too much pain, but the scene he was seeing was too beautiful for him to take any notice to the pain or to his own hunger. Maybe he would just lay there as the darkness grew, maybe he would remember this last image of beauty before he died. "I'll look after you, sister…always…you, Derek and Rachel. Nothing will happen to you." He closed his eyes and his head fell to the side.

Soon, his soul would leave his body. At the same time his soul left his body, Hector, Valerie, Nevel, and Gibby all got the thoughts and deep feelings that they must return home as soon as possible. When his soul left his body, Derek was having nightmares and panic attacks, feeling his brother's life slipping away, and Amy suddenly walked into the room and took him in an embrace. Adam's soul smiled upon him. Rachel was attending her kindergarten class and Adam watched over her, sending some students over to play with her so she wouldn't be alone. And when his soul left his body, something went wrong with that basement door. Try as he might, Jeremy could not open it. He would keep trying until Gibby, the first to arrive, made it home. And Gibby had no problem opening the basement door.

* * *

A tearful chapter, Jeremy is truly a monster. You can't help but to admire Adam, though. He protected his sister, protected his mother, even though it cost him his life. Adam will always be remembered, and always will he be missed.


	29. The Mute Child

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N: I have named this chapter the same as the first chapter of the original PATERNAL BONDS. This means we've entered familiar waters. Let's do this.

* * *

Chapter 29 (The Mute Child)

Not quite four years later, everybody had reached their breaking point. Jeremy had been severely penalized for what he'd done to Adam and had spent a year in captivity in one of the cells Hector had in his basement. They had to move the little girl in with someone else who worked for Victor, it was the only way to keep her safe from Jeremy. She didn't understand it, and Sam wasn't happy about it, but it was the only way.

Jonah had made several attempts to contact Carly, seeing as how she'd become such a big star that maybe she could do something. Even though Henry finally became the police chief, he'd forgotten that Seattle was no longer corrupt. He still didn't trust the police force, and they _were _moving slowly in Sam's case. Nobody had found Adam's body, either. Sam was finally starting to give up the hope that she would ever be found, that she would ever be saved. Even Valerie was at the end of her rope. Thank god she was still able to communicate with Rachel on a daily basis, but it broke her heart every time the girl asked her "Mommy, when are you coming home?"

Hector was starting to get careless, but he still moved about frequently and blindfolded those with him. However, he was leaving trails. Victor wasn't pleased, he did _not_ want anyone getting caught for this. Freddie had become rich, and Hector attributed it to himself. Jeremy wasn't even aware that Freddie moved to a location near where he dumped Adam's body, it was like he was led there for some reason. Ever since the young boy's death, strange things had been happening, such as Jeremy and Hector's carelessness, for example. Even Nevel was showing a desire to get out of there.

In Jeremy's revenge, he caused Hector to become drunk once again, and then taped him abusing Sam one last time. Nevel had perfect access to this camera and to the computers. For some odd reason, Hector started allowing internet access. Every now and then, one of the villains would start hearing a voice in their head that sounded like that of a little child, of Adam. When this happened, it had a different effect on everybody. Nevel knew of a site that Freddie's close friend, Jake helped to run. It was a porn site.

"What would happen if I posted this video," Nevel said quietly as he placed the camera in his desk drawer. He would think on it for a few days. He knew surely it would mean being found. If they were found out, then wouldn't that mean they'd be out of this? He wanted so much to be where his mother was, but he had a feeling that if he didn't redeem himself, he'd be going elsewhere.

Elsewhere, Jonah had finally met up with Carly and Freddie at the same time. He'd given them the radio watches he used to talk to Valerie. They were skeptical when he told them that it was indeed Hector who had Sam. They didn't want to believe that her father would be so evil. When they heard Valerie's voice over the radio, their eyes were wet with tears. Nearly ten years, and even hearing her voice would make their hearts jump.

Jonah had the hardest time getting close to Carly, it would have been easier to go to Freddie, but he'd been too scared to do that. He didn't know Ms. Briggs was Carly's bodyguard, and he thought then it might have been easier to get to Carly through her as well. His reason for not coming forward sooner, he had a little girl and two families to take care of. It was an unfortunate circumstance, but true. "I want my girl back, my daughter wants her mother back, and her family wants her back," Jonah said with narrow eyes. Freddie and Carly nodded their heads and sighed softly.

"We need to think of _something_," Carly said while narrowing her eyes. She was going to come up with a plan to find Sam now. This had gone on far too long.

"Now that my dad's finally police chief, we _can_ get started," Freddie said while rubbing his chin. He knew he'd need to fill his maid and butler in if they actually did anything at all. Nothing was pressing matters though, and Freddie didn't know where to find Hector, if he really even _was_ the perp. "I have a meeting with Hector in a couple weeks, I may question him then."

"I'm telling you, it is _him!"_ Jonah said while banging his fist into his palm. "Jeremy, Gibby and Nevel are there too!"

"We'll see, okay? We'll see what happens…I am still not one hundred percent sure. I need something more to go on before we can suspect him completely. I mean up till now, he's been a fairly decent guy."

"He's pure evil," Jonah replied flatly. "He's about as evil as your ratings of Carly's movies."

"Hey, I don't rate them _that_ badly."

Two weeks later, Jeremy had _enough_ of Sam's sniveling. She was always going on and on about her daughter, well he wasn't afraid to get rid of another kid. He grinned as he drove down the street to the place where the little girl was being held. He reveled in delight at how Sam might take the news of her daughter's death. He stopped in front of the house and entered, seeing an old man rocking in his chair and the little girl reading a book. She was so afraid, and so quiet. She never spoke, never.

The old man lifted his head and the girl's eyes widened as Jeremy pointed his gun towards the man. She screamed as Jeremy fired a shot into the elder's head and grabbed her by the arm. "It's time for you to take your punishment too." She shouted as Jonah started pulling her to his car. "Don't give me a hard time, bitch."

He threw her into his car and began driving off. Suddenly he heard that voice in his head again, Adam. Adam was telling the girl it'd be okay, he was also pressing a maid in a store somewhere a ways off to leave quickly, and he urged Jeremy to the same location that he'd passed away at. "You're going to enjoy where I'll be taking you, kid. Same place that other kid died."

Soon, Jeremy stopped his car at the exact location he left Adam. He exited the vehicle and pulled the little girl from the car. She whimpered and curled up on the road, clutching her legs to her chest. "You're never going to see your mommy again, nor will you ever see the light of day after this." The girl shook and buried her head into her knees as Jeremy entered his car and circled around, driving off at full speed. He didn't care if he was penalized after this, hell Hector probably wouldn't give a damn anymore.

In his blind rage, he didn't see a car coming his way. The woman driving it yelled and swerved out of his way to avoid a collision. He laughed and flipped her off. She was a young woman in her twenties, she seemed to be caring. He didn't think about the possibility that she might find the small girl on the side of the road, and he didn't care.

The little girl sat in a ball about ten miles away and looked up as the woman's car approached her. Like a deer in the headlights, she froze. The woman screamed and stopped the car, then quickly exited it. It was Freddie's maid, Tina. "Oh my god, a girl in the road, please tell me I didn't hit her. Mr. Benson would be so angry if he knew I struck a child!" Tina ran to the front and sighed with relief when she saw the girl was safe from harm. "What are you doing out here?"

"…" The girl didn't want to talk, she didn't want to trust anybody anymore. But from what she'd seen, women weren't bad. Valerie was nice, her mom was nice, all women she met were nice, so maybe this one was too. Tina was starting to realize this girl wasn't talking, and when she asked if the girl _could_ talk, the girl nodded. Tina continued asking all sorts of questions about her parents, her family, why she was on the road, and in all honesty, the young child wasn't even sure how to answer half of them.

"Then let me take you home, my boss will gladly provide shelter." The girl slowly nodded her head, knowing anywhere was better than where she was at right now. Besides, she felt as if she had someone watching her, protecting her. She really would be safe with Tina. She took the maid's hand and let her walk her to the car. Maybe soon, someone would find her mom.

* * *

It's Angie! And the question of who it was that dropped her off is finally answered. Because until I wrote this chapter, not even I knew who it was...heh heh. Wait till you discover who it was that put up the video without permission, and why.


	30. Two Options

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 30 (Two Options)

"You did _what?_" Gibby shouted as he slammed Jeremy against the wall. It had been a mistake to tell Gibby that he just dumped the little girl off to die. Nevel sighed in boredom as he and Hector watched from the table, they just didn't care anymore. Let Gibby kill Jeremy. "Ten years with you and I _still_ hate you. You try to kill two children, then dump the other two to die. I wonder _why_ I hate you!"

"Look, the kid had to go," Jeremy said while shrugging his shoulders. Gibby grabbed Jeremy's nose and smirked, remembering how his nose had been broken. "What are you doing?"

"I'm about to break you, again." Jeremy's eyes widened and he shouted as Gibby twisted hard left on the nose. Gibby then grabbed the man's arm, placed it over his shoulder and tossed him in an ark, landing him on the table and breaking it. Hector sighed and looked over to see Valerie watching from the doorway.

"Looks like we're going to need to buy a new table," Hector said as he slowly rose from the chair. Jeremy slowly opened his eyes in time to see Gibby land upon him, jabbing his elbow into his thigh. He shouted in pain as Gibby proceeded to grab his hair and slam his head repeatedly in the ground. "He clearly learned nothing in his captivity."

"I'd say it only made him worse," Nevel said while following Hector to the other side of the room. He always thought Hector was the evil one, but even he didn't believe in murdering an innocent child. Maybe he was evil, but Jeremy was definitely eviler. They winced as Gibby delivered a powerful kick to his stomach.

Jeremy moaned as Gibby lifted him up from the ground, he was covered in blood. Gibby started punching him in the back, then shifted to the front and slammed his fist into Jeremy's ribs, hoping to shatter them. "You are _nothing!_" Gibby shouted angrily, his eyes full of rage. Neither Jeremy or Hector were anything in his book. He hated both of them. "One day, you're going to learn just how much people hate you, and you're going to be killed by someone who hates you more than anything. You're going to fuck with the wrong person."

"And that person isn't you?" Gibby laughed and one last time threw Jeremy hard into the wall, slamming his head in and creating a hole. Jeremy moaned as Gibby pulled him away from the wall and patted his back.

"Go get yourself fixed."

"Fuck you." Jeremy slowly walked away, passing Valerie in the door. He gave her a sharp glare that made her shrink back in fear. She quickly rushed into the room and the others looked at her as she stared back with concern. Was it true? Had Jeremy really dumped Sam's daughter to die?

"We have a road trip to make," Gibby said quietly, seeing the worry in Valerie's eyes. He agreed there was reason to be afraid or what might happen. Hector and Nevel shrugged, they didn't see anything wrong with the two running off again. Valerie nodded as she and Gibby left for his car. They were going to find the girl, and if she was in any danger, they were going to get her out of danger. Sam was _not_ going to lose another child to this man. Luckily, they knew where Jeremy would have gone to dump her, he said it was the same place he put Adam.

Upon driving to the location, they could not find a sign that the girl was there. The two stepped out of their cars and decided to investigate. "You look on that side, and I'll look over here." Valerie nodded as she moved to the left side of the road and began walking along the edge of the street, peering out in the open grass. It was just an open field for miles, the girl surely couldn't be there. Gibby wasn't having any luck on his side either. Then something made her look again, and when she squinted her eyes, she could see a mansion in the distance.

"Gibby! Come over here, quickly!" Gibby turned his head and hurried over, both hoping she found the girl and hoping she didn't, nobody wanted to stumble upon the body of a little child. Valerie pointed and his gaze followed to the house, it hadn't been there a few years ago. "Didn't Jeremy say this place didn't have anybody living here?"

"Yeah…he did…" The two wondered if perhaps anyone came by for that house, chances were slim, but even the oddest of chances _still_ stood a chance. "Get in the car, let's go check out that house." Valerie nodded as she and Gibby quickly got into his car and drove for the house. What if the girl was there? Would they leave her there? It was a hard decision to make. Evidently she would be safer anywhere but where Jeremy was. Upon entering the vicinity of the house, which had been a five minute drive, they parked their car out back and decided to remain obscure and not knock on the door.

"So what are we going to do?"

"Look through the windows…" The first window they arrived at was a bedroom window, and upon looking through it, they saw a maid and a butler standing in front of a television. On a nearby bed was a little girl with blonde hair, her eyes fixated on the television. "Oh my god, it's her."

"What?" Valerie looked through the window and smiled softly, it really was the young girl. So who's house was this, that was the question. On the television was a scene of pure nostalgia for both of them. It was iCarly. "They ended it ten years ago, didn't they? Right after she left…"

"Yeah, god I miss those days." He really did, he often enjoyed acting on iCarly. He was a good friend of the group, and then something changed him. He betrayed them, betrayed Sam. Gibby lowered his head as he saw Freddie embrace Sam, she was at her happiest in that scene. Valerie looked at him as his arms began to shake and tears started to leave his eyes. "I deserve to die, Valerie. I deserve death." He had plenty of time to reflect on what his crime and punishment should be. He wanted to be locked up, he wanted the death penalty for his crimes.

What would be his sentence? For holding Sam for ten long years and torturing her, allowing a man to abuse her, he knew well he deserved death. "Gibby…" He shook his head and turned away from the window, he couldn't bear to look in there. Not when iCarly was being watched, no, he didn't deserve to be anywhere near that area. Valerie peered into the window once more and smiled, she knew who's home this was. The owner of it was standing in the doorway, talking to the maid. It was Freddie. "The girl's safe, let's just leave her here…"

"If I can control anything, it's ensuring that girl's safety. I won't leave her anywhere without knowing that it is truly-"

"Freddie Benson lives here." Gibby's eyes widened and his mouth hung open, he had been stunned to hear that. One thing that was for sure, he didn't need to be anywhere near him, he was too good of a person.

"She's safe then, let's go."

"I'm with you. And Gibby…"

"What?" Valerie lifted her hand up and rubbed his back, smiling softly. She knew the pain he felt, but she did think that he was a lot better than Jeremy or Nevel were.

"You're not _all_ bad. You just had the wrong thoughts and it made you a bad guy. Do you think Sylvia wants you to die?" Gibby smiled softly and closed his eyes. No, she wouldn't want him to die, neither would his son.

Nevel flew on one of their private jets to Miami, in his backpack he held the camera used to film Sam's attack five months ago. He knew what he was going to do, and he figured he was going about it the wrong way, but he didn't care. He was still screwed up in some ways.

When his plane landed, he started heading to the nearest, largest library around. He was going to upload the video onto the net, Jake should see it and tell Freddie. They wouldn't be able to trace it back to him or where they were, he wanted to be sure of that, but at least they would know it was Hector who had Sam all this time. In hindsight, they might already know, but he wasn't exactly sure. Either way, he knew of the chain and effect reaction this might cause them. Freddie was their greatest threat, if he knew the truth, he would most surely try and find Hector even harder now.

As Nevel started uploading the video, tears started to come to his eyes. What would happen if they did come after them? Would he live? Would he die? Did he care? Yes, but not so much anymore. The death of his mother still haunted him, ten years after the fact. As he remembered the picture of what she looked like, he _still_ felt sick. He was on a computer that faced a wall, so at least the librarian wouldn't question him.

Hector didn't have them under as strict surveillance anymore, but they were still watched on occasion when it came to them being outside the house. Nevel closed his eyes and memories of the last ten years flushed through his mind. Violence, hate, blood, and tears all came in great flashes. What had he become? What had he done? He was starting to feel the ramifications of his age old decision. He was only a thirteen year old boy when all this began. Now, at twenty three, he had a feeling his world would soon turn to black.

He stared at the computer screen and his mouse hovered above the two buttons that offered him a choice. "Upload" versus "Cancel." Upload the video, and it's all over, this will all end. Cancel, and continue life like this. Continue down the path of evil until Sam's body finally gives in and she dies in captivity, never to know the light of day again. Cancel, and continue to watch Jeremy try severely to damage Valerie and Gibby beat the shit out of him. Upload, and the one who hates Jeremy most of all will come to find him, to come and save the final Williams family member, to end a mission to save the Williams after ten long, grueling years.

Nevel let the tears streak his face as he remembered how crazed he'd become. What was it that caused him to snap? Was it that insane jealousy, the desire to have what he would never have? Taking Sam had ended iCarly, but did he get what he wanted? No. No he didn't. He looked up to see the librarian working at her desk. She looked over at him and frowned. "Ma'am? Ma'am I have a question."

"What is it, sir?" The librarian asked respectfully. She had to talk like that to all her customers.

"Let's say hypothetically, you were faced with two choices. One led into continuing a life of hell, of sin and suffering, while the other path led you to change. Leading you, surely, to a path of salvation…Though, again speaking hypothetically of course, you know you're sure to lose your life in the process, the choice could save the life of so many others…what would you do?"

"Go the path of redemption, of course." Nevel blinked as the librarian went back to her work. He looked at the computer screen, his eyes wide. The woman had said that so quickly, without any thought at all. Was it so easy to value human life above one's own self? To make a decision without any greed at all? He closed his eyes, nodding his head slowly, he knew what he needed to do then.

Slowly, the mouse shifted to the Upload button. It hovered for a second and clicked. The process was done in a matter of seconds, the video was up. Knowing how this site works, the creator would be the first to see it, and so would Jake. Knowing the details of the video, he _knew_ they would block it before anybody else got a chance to view it. Maybe this was the start of the snowball effect he'd waited ten years for. He slowly opened his eyes and narrowed them. "It is done."

* * *

Gibby's not so bad, huh. Nevel starts the snowball effect that may lead to rescue. I feel bad for them, for we all know how they go out. There is no changing that part.


	31. Snowball Effect Begins

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 31 (Snowball Effect Begins)

The creator of the pornographic site sat in his kitchen, eating a meal he had prepared for himself. He had started the site with Jake in college as a research project, they hadn't intended for it to become a porn site, so videos weren't actually uploaded _that_ often. It made it easy to regulate. They only let a few in, it was almost exclusive. He actually had a pretty good career in business and marketing, so he didn't spend a lot of time on his computer.

He took a bite of his dumplings when his cell phone, seated next to his plate, began buzzing. Raising his eyebrows, he lifted the phone up and sighed. Someone just posted a video onto the site. He walked to the living room, grabbed his laptop and carried it back to the kitchen. He carefully set it on the table and turned it on while taking a bite of the pork chops. He looked to the computer and waited for it to start up. "Come on, stupid computer, I don't have all day."

Finally it was ready for use. He opened his browser and clicked to his site. After about five minutes, he logged in and clicked the video, ready to see what it was. His eyes narrowed as he saw a familiar face, the girl looked like the old iCarly star, Sam. "Really? Tell me she's not honestly into porn…" Then again, hadn't she been kidnapped? She didn't look like she even knew she was being taped. Not only that, but this man was being really rough. Now he had to look closely, because a lot of 'rape fantasies' were usually uploaded, but there was always something to tell the difference between the fake ones and the real ones.

That difference came swiftly, as Sam started crying and asking her own _dad_ why he was doing this to her. The man became sick and gagged, feeling like he was about to lose that meal he had just eaten. He quickly stopped the video and started hurrying to block the video. He was going to delete it, but something made him stop. This girl had been abducted ten years ago and the criminals were sloppy enough to upload a video of her online. She could be found! She could be saved! Not only that, but didn't Jake know her? He grabbed his phone and dialed Jake's number. "Hey Jake, I have something to tell you, but I don't think you're going to like it." Jake yawned, it was clear he was still asleep. The man sighed and rolled his eyes, Jake was often a slacker. "Get up and get to the site, quickly!"

"I don't want to watch anything right now," Jake muttered as he slowly sat up.

"You're going to need to see this." Jake frowned and gave in, getting out of his bed and moving to the computer.

"What are you going to show me?" He logged into the website and frowned as he clicked the admin button. When was this site going to be shut down? It wasn't so much that he _wanted_ it to be, but he was surprised that it made it this far. "I'm not even awake enough."

"Oh this is going to wake you up…I'm sorry man…"

"Okay…" That was a bit suspicious, but he didn't care at the moment. He clicked the video, which had been blocked to the point where only certain people could access it. Only the two creators could see it, but if the cyber police wanted to come in, they could also catch it. His eyes widened as the video started to begin. "Sam? Sam Puckett? What the…" His eyes widened even more as she started screaming, begging her father to stop. "N-No…it can't…"

"It's her, the criminals uploaded a video of her after all these years." Jake quickly stopped the video and looked away, closing his eyes. He _never_ wanted to see something like that. How could mankind be so evil? This video was too sickening for him. He almost wished he ate something so the urge to puke would actually cause him to vomit. He had that sickening feeling, obviously. "What are you going to do?"

"We could report it, but the site might get shut down permanently." The creator nodded, acknowledging that the site had probably run its course after all this time. They didn't need it up anymore, so if the police wanted to shut it down, then they wouldn't care. "I have to tell them. Freddie needs to know this, because that man is his editor now. He thinks Hector's clean…"

"Okay man, but only we can access it. I am _not_ letting this video be seen on this site." Jake nodded his head as he hung up the phone and stared at the computer screen. He was starting to turn green, the ill feeling rising in his stomach. This video was bound to throw Freddie into action, he knew it. He slowly dialed the number to Ms. Benson, she was the officer in charge of closing sites like these. This was something the police department could use in furthering their investigation on Sam's kidnapping. Judging by the time on the video, she was still alive.

"Hello Jake," Della said with a frown as she answered her phone. She wasn't exactly fond of him, not appreciating the fact that Freddie had a pervert for a friend. It wasn't her place to criticize her son's friends, though, so she never said anything.

Minutes later, Della was rushing through her office building. She found Amy and Spencer talking in an office room. She shut the door and the two looked curiously at her. Della looked pale, sick beyond all measure. "Amy, I'm sorry, you're going to hate me for this. You need to see this, though…"

"What is it?" Amy asked as she raised her eyebrow. Della pulled her laptop from her pack and set it on the desk as Spencer and Amy surrounded her. They were wondering what had Ms. Benson going crazy like this. When her computer started up, Spencer raised his eyebrows. It was clear that she was on a pornographic site.

"Why are you on there?" Spencer asked while crossing his arms. He knew Della wasn't the type to browse. Maybe someone reported something. "Did someone report another video?"

"Yes…" Della closed her eyes and started the video up again. Amy gasped and cupped her hand over her mouth. Tears started to drip from her eyes, she couldn't believe she was seeing her _daughter_. "It's five months old, Sam is…still alive…"

"I can't believe this!" Amy cried while taking a step back. This was not only proof that Sam was alive, but proof that _Hector_ was responsible for her daughter's abduction. "He's had her…all this time…turn it off! Now!" Della nodded and turned off the video as Amy placed her hand to her chest. Her heart was racing. How could Hector do this to her? How could he do it to her daughter? She had begun to suspect him earlier, but now it was cemented for her. "I…I let her go. I handed him off to her!"

"No, don't start blaming yourself," Spencer said as Amy closed her eyes. Anger, guilt, sadness, hate, these were just a few of the emotions that were starting to swirl about inside of her. Hector was dead to her now. All this time and he had been sending her letters, saying how sorry he was and telling her to never give up hope. He had _given_ her that hope! Now, in just seconds, it had been shattered.

"That…that…_bastard!_ How dare he put his hands on my daughter!" Della closed her eyes and sighed, knowing what was next. She needed to tell Freddie. Freddie actually worked with the police department sometimes, there were occasions when he would go and fetch a criminal for them. He wanted to find Sam so badly, then if he saw this, he would want to go search out Hector. The man would probably end up dead at his hands, though. Spencer stared at the computer and growled, he too was filling up with rage.

"Wait until I get my hands on him," Spencer said under his breath.

"What would you do?"

"Legally, I can't do anything but prosecute him, but I _can_ put him to death." If he could only prosecute Hector, he could probably convince a jury to convict him and put him to death. It would be the greatest trial of the decade, and also the shortest, if he got to dip his hands into the trial. "Hector Puckett, sentenced to death by lethal injection, I can see it now…" Hector deserved so much more than lethal injection, but there weren't many execution methods that were sanctioned anymore. True, he did wonder about the days when criminals were executed on the spot. Those days ended in the late eighteen hundreds, only because there were activists stupid enough to say it was cruel and unusual. How the hell could a serial killer, a murderer, a rapist, get off scot free or not executed for it being cruel and unusual, when their crimes were even crueler!

"I will have to tell Freddie," Della said as she closed her laptop. She knew it was going to make him search Hector out. Hell, Freddie knew where he sent the manuscripts to. If anything, the old woman there might be willing to help him out.

* * *

And there you go, the reactions, it all begins.


	32. It Is Time

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 32 (It is Time)

Jonah drove to pick his daughter up from school, she was attending Index Elementary and was now in fifth grade. Her teacher was actually Vanessa, who'd gotten her teaching degree in elementary education. She sometimes got teased for having an aunt who taught her, but most of the kids didn't really care. Her aunt Veronica had become a model for some perfume company while Victoria was starting to finish up her college year. She was aiming to be an art teacher at high school level.

At school, Rachel called Vanessa by Miss Williams, as proper. Vanessa hadn't been married yet, but was engaged to a man who treated her as the world. She didn't really want to get married without Valerie there, but like the rest of the family, she was starting to see how there might not be any way to avoid it. Valerie was missing so much, it was depressing for everyone. Only one of Valerie's grandparents was still alive, the others having passed during her captivity. Her favorite grandfather passed away and Valerie never got the chance to be with him.

Rachel looked up as Vanessa dismissed her class. She sat there until everyone left, just watching Vanessa stare sadly out the window. Rachel walked over to Vanessa and took her hand, causing the woman to smile. "It's okay. Daddy says he's going to bring mommy back one day." Rachel still had nightmares sometimes, dreaming that her mom was being attacked by the bad man. Jonah always wished desperately that he could tell her they were just dreams. While they were, Valerie was most likely being attacked by Jeremy. He hated it, he hated him, he wanted to take Jeremy and tear him limb from limb.

"It's been so long. How much of your mother do you remember that we haven't told you about?" She remembered a lot, she thought. She remembered her mother being kind, loving, and seemingly carefree. She wanted to remember her mother forever, but was scared of losing her memory. She knew that when people got older, it was harder to recall certain memories, and that was true. There were some parts of her time with her mom that she couldn't remember. She didn't want to forget her mom. The thought of forgetting her terrified her on a daily basis, but she had to continue to have the faith she'd see her mother again one day.

Jonah walked into the classroom and smiled at his daughter, he was always happy to see her so close to her aunts. He closed his eyes and let out a soft sigh. "Rachel sweetheart, it's time to go home. I hate to tear you from your favorite aunt, but we have to get you back." Rachel and Vanessa turned to Jonah and smiled. Rachel quickly ran to him and threw her arms around his legs.

"Daddy!" Rachel looked over as two of her fellow classmates entered the room, they were her friends Hank and Lilly. "Hank! Lilly!"

"We were looking for you Rachel," Lilly said as she hurried over to her best friend. Jonah laughed as he looked over to Vanessa. He had something he needed to talk to her about, but didn't want Rachel to hear it.

"Rachel, you can go play with your friends for a little while."

"I can?" Rachel asked with a wide grin. Jonah nodded and she cheered as she ran out of the classroom with her two friends. Jonah sighed and walked up to the desk, leaning against it.

"What's going on?" Vanessa asked quietly.

"It seems the Seattle Police have made an arrest yesterday. A man who worked at a local ice cream shop…he confessed to having 'shot' Ms. Puckett and being involved in Sam's kidnapping." Vanessa smiled sadly and nodded, any news towards solving Sam's kidnapping was great, because it was another step closer to seeing Valerie. "They also…found a body…"

"What?" This was the part he didn't want Rachel to know, because chances were likely she knew who this person was. Derek had been devastated when his grandmother told him. Jonah breathed in as Vanessa started to become fearful. She, like the rest of the family, was always prepared for the worst.

"They found the skeletal remains of a five year old male. It was proven that he was Sam's firstborn son, his DNA matched up with both his brother and his grandmother."

"Oh my god, no…" Vanessa cupped her mouth and closed her eyes. How could anyone be so cruel? They all thought it was Hector, nobody even remotely suspected it to be Jeremy. However, Valerie's family and Jonah easily suspected him, since they had experience in dealing with just how wrathful he could really be.

"It seems also that Sam has another child, a little girl, which Freddie's named Angie. She was dumped in the same location as this boy…his maid found her."

"Oh god." She sighed with relief and closed her eyes, thank god Angie would be safe. Derek was actually not in school today, as Amy had to take care of him when she told him about Adam. He wanted to cry, but he couldn't, yet he was too distraught to go to school. Vanessa had wondered why he hadn't been in class. "So, what happens now?"

"I don't know. Freddie's been in touch with his father, surprisingly enough. I'm wondering if Freddie's going to try and find Sam. If so, I want in." Vanessa was sure Jonah would be helpful to Freddie. After all, Jonah was pretty good at protecting people. Plus, he was one of the best weapons specialists in Seattle. If he couldn't be of benefit, then who could? Suddenly, Jonah's phone started ringing, it was Carly's ringtone. He raised his eyebrows and sighed, he had to take the call, considering she often had important news for him. "Hello Carly…"

"Jonah, you need to come to California immediately!" Carly shouted aggravatingly. Jonah raised his eyebrow, wondering why Carly was so panicked. "We need to prepare."

"What are you talking about?"

"Freddie's pissed, he's gone off with Jake and Henry. We need to be ready in case something goes wrong." Jonah frowned and narrowed his eyes, he saw where this was going. What had happened to anger Freddie, though? Wasn't he usually calm and mild-mannered? "Someone put up a video of Sam, and now he's after Hector."

"So you guys believe me now?"

"We always believed you, but Freddie just wanted to investigate him. Now there's proof. You need to come here, and bring some weapons. If Freddie needs us, he's going to call us. Something tells me that he's going to need us."

"Okay. So what about Cara?" Cara was with her father, it was best for publicity reasons that no one knew about her or about her father. That saved Carly from the paparazzi.

"She's with her father. Do you have someone to watch over Rachel?"

"Yeah, someone can take her right now. I'll be in California soon…" His heart was pumping now, he was on a mission. He would save Valerie. Finally, the last Williams would be free, it was time. Vanessa raised her eyebrow as Jonah hung up his phone. "Vanessa, I need you to gather up everyone in your family and stay in the house. Take Rachel with you, along with my family. If anything should happen, you need to be together."

"What's going on?" Vanessa asked as Jonah slowly looked up to her. Rachel ran into the classroom with her two friends and stopped when she saw how serious her father looked. Jonah opened his eyes and stared into Vanessa's eyes.

"It's time."

* * *

And here we go.


	33. Phone Call

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 33 (Phone Call)

Elderly Amelia Rann sat in her recliner, sipping her coffee. It was a warm night, and her two bodyguards, Brick and Chuck, raided the kitchen fridge. She was the one who received the manuscripts that Hector would come pick up. She was one of Hector's closest workers. She knew he had a suspicion that he was at the end of his rope, but he wasn't sure about it at all. She knew, though, that if Freddie were to go looking for him, he'd probably end up coming here first.

"There's nothing in here," Brick said as he eyed the practically bare refrigerator. He wondered why Amelia didn't bother buying any food. Truth be told, she bought mostly pantry food. "Did we even need to come over tonight?"

"Yes," Chuck replied. Amelia had called them with the thought that Freddie was going to come by. She'd been contacted by a hotel manager where Hector was staying a few days and told that Freddie and two others paid a visit to him and might be catching a flight to Arkansas. Now was the biggest time for Brick and Chuck to be there. Although, the old woman proved to be very strong in her own respect. If she couldn't handle herself, they would be surprised. It was Hector who hired them anyway. "If she needs anything, we are to make sure those needs are met."

"She's formidable in her own right, I don't think she needs us." Amelia rolled her eyes and sipped her coffee once more. So far, nothing was happening. There was nothing to be worried about. She walked to her front door and peered out the window next to it. Narrowing her eyes, she saw Freddie walking down the street. Henry and Jake were with him. So he had come after all. Once they reached the door and knocked, she opened it after waiting for a second. Chuck and Brick peered out of the kitchen. Chuck sighed as Brick had a piece of bologna hanging from his mouth.

"Hello, how may I help you men?" Amelia asked sweetly. She had a cell ready for them downstairs, along with a pack of rats she was going to prepare to empty out in case anyone thought to escape.

"Hey, I don't know if you know me, I am Freddie Benson."

"Oh! You're the one with those lovely manuscripts! Yes, come in, come in!"

"Thank you, ma'am." Amelia turned around and let them in, looking up at her two bodyguards and motioning them to go back into the kitchen. She didn't want Freddie to suspect she was anything more than a sweet old lady. "I was wondering if you have any idea where Hector Puckett is."

"Hector? The man that picks up your manuscripts?" Freddie nodded as she rubbed her chin. No, she hadn't any idea. However, she did think he moved to a really big mansion somewhere recently. "No, I don't know where you could find him."

"Oh, I see…" He really hoped she might know something about this elusive man, maybe she might have something else. Anything else would have been helpful to them. "Well, do you have anything that might help?"

"I wish…" Freddie looked at Jake and his father with a frown, they might have to turn their investigation elsewhere. Although, Freddie wasn't giving up anytime soon, as he had other questions for the lady. "You know, I've read some of your writing, I think you are fantastic."

"Thank you ma'am." Amelia walked over to the end table and grabbed a pen and paper. So far, he didn't seem to distrust her. "We're looking for him because we want to discuss his daughter who is missing."

"I see, well I do hope she is found." She began writing down a phone number, perhaps allowing him to contact them just before she killed them. They wanted to actually hold them hostage for a few days, and then kill them. "I remember this, he gave me a phone number to contact him with. Here you are." Freddie smiled as his eyebrows rose, this was the closest he'd come to finding Sam, it was perfect.

"Thank you very much!" Henry and Jake walked with him to the corner of the room as Freddie quickly pulled his phone out. If this was a true number, he would hope to talk to Sam at least. They didn't see Amelia walk away to the kitchen.

In the mansion where Sam was being held in her cell, she knew that Gibby, Jeremy, Nevel and Valerie were behind the door. They had nothing better to do than be down there. "Why did you do it?" Sam asked with a shivering sob. "Why did you hurt my little girl? What did my babies ever do to you!"

"They annoyed me with their cries," Jeremy said with a low growl. Gibby and Valerie looked at each other and frowned, surely Jeremy wasn't that pathetic. Then again, in all these years, he never appeared to possess any good qualities. "You know they found your son's bones, right?" Sam gasped and her eyes widened. Valerie closed her eyes and Gibby looked away. "He deserved what he got, believe me. When you piss me off, you know you're going to be punished."

"You're a cruel bastard!"

"You're not the first to say that," Gibby said quietly. Jeremy would have smacked anyone to say something like that, but when it came to Gibby, he didn't mess with him. Some might call him a coward, some might call him smart, but he really wanted to do all he could to avoid confrontation with Gibby.

"They may be coming for us," Nevel muttered. The group looked at him curiously as he lifted his head up and sighed. "You remember that time five months ago? That video…I uploaded it…"

"What?" Jeremy screamed out in agony. This was bad, very bad. If anyone caught that, they would know it was Hector and try to find him. "Why the _hell_ would you do that!"

"I don't know…" Valerie and Gibby were shocked, they never guessed _Nevel_ would be the one to give them away. "I guess, I just got tired…"

"Shit man! You don't know the crap you just unleashed!" He was about to attack Nevel when his phone started going off. Valerie jumped when it went off, as it was very loud. She snapped for him to answer the phone, so he did so. "What?"

"Hello, I would like to speak with Hector Puckett," the man responded. It was Freddie, but the group hadn't heard his voice in so long that they hadn't recognized it. Jeremy chuckled and slowly shook his head.

"He isn't here right now, who may I ask is calling? Maybe I can give him a message."

"Yeah sure, my name is Freddie Benson."

"Freddie?" Valerie smiled and Gibby gasped. Nevel didn't really react. He knew Freddie would probably find that video, so he knew why Freddie was contacting them. Sam bowed her head and her arms shook, tears dripping down her cheeks. She couldn't believe it. Freddie must know she was okay now. Would he be coming for her? She still loved him, she still yearned for him. Would he really be coming to save her?

"How the hell would he figure out Jeremy's number?" Gibby asked with a raised eyebrow. Valerie shrugged and closed her eyes in thought.

"The only one to know Jeremy's number is that woman in Arkansas," Valerie replied quietly. "Hector gave his number to her so she could contact him whenever manuscripts were ready for pick up." Had Freddie realized that the woman had the number? Had he finally realized where Sam was? Oh god, salvation felt so close.

"Suicide," Nevel spoke quietly. The others looked at him as he sat down against a nearby wall. "That's what this is, it's suicide. He's throwing it all away, and for what? For Sam?"

"Let me talk to him!" Sam cried out as she stood up and placed her hands on the door. Valerie looked over while the others scowled in her direction. "Please! I want to talk to Freddie!"

"Like _hell_ we're letting that happen," Gibby said as he kicked the door. Sam yelped and took a step back. He _still_ wasn't good to her. Valerie quickly grabbed Gibby's arm and looked into his eyes.

"Please, let's just humor her," Valerie begged. Why deny Sam the right to talk to the only man she still had even the slightest bit of faith in? It wasn't fair, it wasn't right. "She still loves him, Gibby…let her talk…" Gibby frowned and looked over at Jeremy, who was holding the phone hesitantly. He didn't want to do it.

"Just put it on speaker so she'll hear his voice at least." Jeremy sighed and flipped the speakerphone on. Valerie knocked on Sam's door and the girl moved closer. This seemed the best it was going to get for now. "No talking either."

"Jeremy, think I don't know it's you?" Freddie asked with slight anger in his tone. Jeremy frowned and stared at him. Valerie smirked and crossed her arms. She knew Jonah finally got in contact with Freddie and briefed him on the situation with Jeremy and everybody. "You still sick?"

"No, I've been healthy for years," Jeremy said with a dangerous growl. He didn't like people knowing he was involved in all this crap. "So, why you calling?"

"I think you know why. Does anyone care to explain that video?" Jeremy narrowed his eyes and glared at Nevel, he was going to have to have a serious talk with him. How could he be so damn stupid? "Don't try to play dumb either, you know exactly what I'm talking about. By the way, there was a body found a few miles from my mansion…care to explain that as well?"

"Wait, what?" Jeremy looked over as Nevel rolled his eyes and groaned. Valerie smirked, though quickly frowned when Jeremy glared at her.

"Remember that kid you dumped there a few years back?" Nevel asked with narrow eyes.

"You're going to pay for that," Freddie said quietly. "You're going to pay for _everything_ you have done. In fact, I know someone that would just _love_ to talk to you, Jeremy…and you especially…and nice to hear your voice, Nevel."

"Thanks…your sarcasm is duly noted."

"Now, are there any other surprises? Is she pregnant again?"

"No she's not," Gibby replied quickly. They didn't want that happening again, it just wouldn't be right. Freddie was surprised to hear Gibby's voice. Of all people, Gibby being there was just something he'd never expected.

"Wow Gibby, you're there too? So why are you guys there? Why hold her for ten years, why hurt her?

"Revenge. We hated the things she did to us, and we thought she deserved to be punished. It just went on and on, the hole getting dug deeper and deeper."

"So…let me get this straight, see if I got it." He was completely calm, his voice not rising the slightest bit. He was going to be as respectful as possible. "You fucking assholes decide to torment her because she was mean to you?" Gibby and Nevel looked at each other and frowned, he hit the nail on the head for Jeremy at least.

"Our families were _murdered_, thank you very much!" Jeremy shouted angrily. "We were forced to stay in once we got involved!" He was still sore over the loss of his own father, that's why he loved how Sam didn't get to have a father like his. Jeremy sighed and rubbed his forehead. "So, we heard Carly's an actress now, is that so?" Sam lifted her head up and smiled, she was glad to hear that Carly had gone on to become something great.

"Yeah, and she's never stopped thinking about Sam. Neither have I." Sam closed her eyes and sighed slowly, they never forgot her. "Anyway…Valerie, you there as well? Haven't heard your voice yet…" Valerie's eyes widened and the others looked at her, she hadn't wanted to talk for various reasons. "Come on, say something."

"Y-Yeah I'm here, what of it?"

"Your daughter is doing extremely well in school." Valerie smiled with pride as Jeremy's face darkened. Freddie was taunting him, it was evident. "Vanessa's her teacher, she teaches fifth grade now. So I hear. I think Veronica works for a modeling agency and Victoria wants to teach art."

"Wait, I thought they were _dead!"_ Jeremy exclaimed. He had never been told they were alive, he just assumed Kane and Ted lost their lives in that big gas explosion. He looked at Nevel and the others, then narrowed his eyes. "You _lied_ to me!" This had been Valerie's proudest moment, when she and Gibby managed to convince Nevel to tell Jeremy that the attacks on the family had been successful.

"Um, are you married yet, Freddie?" Valerie asked with a smile. She wanted Sam to know as much about Freddie as possible, she wanted Sam to be filled with that hope that Freddie was the man she needed, the man she wanted.

"No, there's only one woman for me, and you guys have her. The little girl that I've adopted, dumped in the same place as that boy, would be my blood daughter as well if I were married." Jeremy frowned and Sam's eyes lit up, was her daughter with Freddie? "You bastards are going to pay."

"We're not afraid of you," Nevel said with a scoffing laugh. Freddie narrowed his eyes and chuckled.

"Right, you _should_ be afraid of me. You don't know what position you stool pigeons are in. I want to find Sam and I will do anything to find her, tearing down whatever is in my way. I'm going to tear down Hector, and if you fuckers are in my way, then I'll take you down too. I have no trouble hating you flunkies."

"Hey, we are _not_ Hector's flunkies."

"Yes. Yes you are. Now let me talk to Sam." Jeremy laughed and shook his head, there was no way he was letting that happen. "I said let me talk to her." Sam grinned and quickly moved to the door. Oh god how she wanted to speak to him. "If you _don't_ let me talk to Hector, then I'm going to make sure you guys are punished _worse_ than what Hector's going to receive when I get my hands on him."

"Just let her talk," Gibby said while looking at Jeremy. Jeremy frowned and rolled his eyes. Sir Gibby had spoken. Valerie took the phone from Jeremy and carefully walked into the cell where Sam was.

"Hey Sam, you have a visitor, sort of…" Sam tentatively took the phone and spoke into it, tears fleeing her eyes.

"F-Freddie, is that really you?"

"Yeah, I'm here Sam. I'm here."

"Oh god…I wish you were right here with me. I want you with me so badly."

"Sam, I'm going to get you out of there. I promise you. Stay strong Sam, stay strong and believe in me. We will save you." Sam slowly nodded her head and wept for the first time in so long. Valerie wanted to see her safe for so long, this seemed all too good to be true. Hell, she could feel Jeremy's seething glare on her.

"Too bad Freddie fell into Hector's trap," Jeremy said as he walked into the cell and tore the phone away from Sam. Sam gasped and grabbed at the phone just as he hung up. Valerie glared at him and he flipped her off, knowing he couldn't do a thing to her with Gibby right behind him. "That lady in Arkansas works for Hector, she'll easily take him down."

"No!' Sam shouted. Valerie's eyes were wide and fearful, was all truly lost?

"Get them," Amelia said with a grin as her two bodyguards attacked both Henry and Jake. She would handle Freddie personally. He looked at her just in time for her to shoot him down with a gun. He shouted out and fell to the ground. "Get their phones! Quickly!" They were going to put a tracking chip on the phones, so they could monitor if they ever tried to call anyone.

"Gladly, boss," Chuck said while removing Henry's phone. "What do we do with Benson?"

"I'll take care of his wounds." Being a retired nurse, she could easily deal with him. They didn't want to kill the men yet, not just yet. "We'll throw them in the dungeon downstairs. He made a bad mistake coming here trying to find his beloved Sam."

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The trap. Now I need to get cracking on the rest of this XD


	34. The Rescue

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

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Chapter 34 (The Rescue)

"Ms. Rann, do you think there will be any further intrusions?" One of the two bodyguards asked as Amelia reclined in her seat. She had a feeling there would be others. She didn't know if it really would be the case, but something inside her told her to keep a good lookout just in case. "If not, then do you think it would be all right if Brick and I headed on home?"

"No, you two stay. I have a pretty good feeling Benson won't be the last we see of our wondrous visitors." Brick and Chuck looked to each other and shrugged. Tapping the armrest with one wrinkly old finger, she narrowed her eyes and gazed out the window. She could hear the sound of an oncoming vehicle. "Chuck, go let Scrappy, Butcher, and Boxer to the backyard. Brick, go grab your baseball bat and leave through the side door. I will give the signal…" The two looked at each other and shrugged as they went to follow her orders.

Amelia groaned as she pushed herself from her seat. She didn't know why she did the things Hector wanted, she simply got money from him, that was it. She didn't know what he did with his daughter, or the others with him, and she didn't care. Slowly, she walked to the window and peered through the shades, narrowing her eyes. Two women and one man exited the car. The two women went around back while the man moved to the front door. _"Oh, a lawyer, I see. How wonderful…"_ The lawyer walked up to the door and knocked. She smiled cheerfully and opened the door. "Hello dearie, and how are you?"

"Hi ma'am, I'm Spencer Shay, and there's something that I need to talk to you about."

"Oh, I see." She peered over her shoulder and smirked as Chuck signaled from the back room, stating the women had entered in the back. "Just a moment." She let her signal out. "Scrappy! Butcher! Boxer! There's fresh meat outside!" Spencer's eyes widened as Chuck released the dogs.

_"Shit! How did we not see that coming?"_ He reached for the gun at his hip, but was hit from behind. "Ah!" Amelia turned around to see Spencer land on the ground. She smirked and motioned Brick to drag Spencer inside. Three shots rang out and Amelia's eyes widened as her dogs yelped.

"No!" She turned around and hissed as she hurried towards the backdoor. Peering out from the window, she saw Della huffing, holding a smoking pistol in her hands. The dogs lay limp at her feet. Amelia's heart sank and she clenched her eyes shut, tearing up and clutching her chest. "Brick! Chuck! Knock those women out and throw them in the place with the others!"

"Yes ma'am!"

At the mansion, Valerie sat on her bed, wiping the tears from her eyes. She'd gotten into yet another fight with Jeremy, but fortunately Gibby was there before he managed to do anything. The look in that man's eyes was far too dangerous for her. Ten years and it still didn't make any sense to her, how come it was_ Jeremy_ that was worse than _Hector_? Why had she been trapped in all this? She looked to her watch and breathed out slowly, she should be able to contact Jonah safely right now. The men were all asleep. She had a pretty good feeling that it was all going to be over soon, that Freddie and Jonah would be coming for them. If that phone call was any indicator of things, then Jonah was for _sure_ setting things up.

She clicked her radio and spoke into it once Jonah responded. "Jonah! When is the attack going to happen?" She lifted her eyes to her closed door and breathed out. "You know Hector's been changing bases, right? He's gone crazy with mistrust…"

"That makes it hard, yeah. I'm sorry you've had to wait so long, Val. I made a promise that I would get you out, and I intend to keep my promises." Valerie smiled and closed her eyes. That's what she loved about him, that fierce determination. "I've finally got a hold of Carly. You'll never guess who her lead bodyguard is…"

"Who?"

"Ms. Briggs." He seemed to pale and Valerie stifled a laugh. That was _insane_, at least she thought it was. Hell, the woman had to be pretty old by now. "Right now, we're just waiting for Freddie to contact us, to let us know when to begin our run." Valerie started to say something, but paused. She felt really bad and didn't want to have to be the one to say Freddie had been captured. Though, in order for both she and Sam to be rescued, Jonah needed to know all the details.

"Jonah. Freddie's been taken."

"What? He has? Shit…" Jonah shook his head and looked off in the distance. He could almost hear Carly in the distance. "Well, chances are he'll be in contact with us through these watches, then. Do you know anything about Hector right now?"

"No, I don't know where he's at…" Nobody did, he had simply left them to their own devices and gave explicit orders for them not to do anything, such as leaving. Jeremy took that as an opportunity to take control and give everyone else the orders. Gibby and Nevel both had to remain calm, even though inside, they wanted to tear off his head. "Sam's stuck in some room, probably wondering when her next meal is going to be…"

"Right." Thinking for a minute, he was pretty sure he knew Valerie well enough to know she was probably getting ready to crack. All these years, the pressure _had_ to be working her over by now. "Valerie, just remember…don't do _anything_ until we get there. We _will_ find you guys somehow...if Hector's really not there, then that just enables Jeremy. Don't do _a thing_. Do you understand me?"

"I know, I know…" She looked to the side and frowned. She _was _getting too overly eager. Who knew how long it would be until they managed to find and save them? She knew he didn't want her to try and get Sam out on her own, and she wouldn't. She started to tear up and clenched her fist, pounding it once into her bed as fear started to surge through her. "I just…I want _out_ of here! I don't know if I can take it any longer, I know Sam can't…just, please…"

"It's going to be okay, Valerie. We will come. I promise you, we will come for you two." Valerie closed her eyes and laid down on the bed, face down on the pillow. "Can you think of a way to describe the mansion you're in?"

"I think…" How had Hector described it? How had Gibby described it? She knew it was pretty big, and they seemed to confirm it. She recalled both of them saying something about it being the biggest mansion in America. She smiled proudly and rolled herself over on her bed. "Okay, get this. It is the biggest mansion in all of America!" Jonah raised his eyebrow and chuckled. It seemed a bit of an exaggeration, but knowing Hector, he could very well be in a mansion of that size.

"You're not exaggerating?"

"Not at all!" Just then, she heard Carly shout in the background and a door slamming open. Jonah winced as Carly and Ms. Briggs rushed in, having just talked to Freddie on their own radios. Carly was pissed, and eager to rescue Freddie and the others. "So, you guys are going to go get Freddie?"

Just then, Carly grabbed Jonah's wrist and spoke into the radio. "Sorry Valerie, we need Jonah. This is urgent! We _will_ be finding you soon. Stay _out_ of trouble!" Valerie felt saddened, but uplifted at the same time. She was feeling more and more confident.

"Okay. One more thing, who is looking after Rachel?" Jonah responded that Vanessa was looking after Rachel. This made her _very_ happy. "Okay, well, hurry and…I love you, Jonah."

"I love you too."

"Come on Jonah! This is important! We're heading out tomorrow morning!" Carly then shut off his watch and Valerie flinched in surprise. She admired Carly's determination and praised the fact that in ten years, she _still_ remembered Sam. She lowered her arms and closed her eyes, whispering a prayer for everybody. She lifted her eyes up and frowned, what would happen to Gibby and to Nevel? If they died, their girlfriends and their children would never know. Would they?

The next morning, Amelia and her bodyguards made their way to the kitchen and begun sharpening a few knives. They wanted to torture their hostages to the point they might die, but they would make sure to resuscitate them. She looked to her oven and breathed in the aroma coming from it. She was making a scrumptious pie. "Brick, Chuck, go guard the front." Chuck crossed his arms and frowned, there wasn't any risk of more intrusion, was there?

"But Ms. Rann, do you really think anyone else will come?" She lifted her hand, which held a really sharp looking butcher knife. The men stepped back as she smiled sweetly at them.

"If those women and that man came for Benson and his group, then there's always a chance of someone _else _coming. We can never be too careful." The men looked at each other and shrugged, she did have a point. Sighing, they turned and left the house, standing guard on either side of the front lawn. Brick looked over to Chuck and folded his arms over.

"So what do you think of this Hector guy? I mean, we've not seen him."

"All I know is he's had his daughter holed up for about ten years, and that's it. I don't care about the details…"

"Think he wants Benson dead?"

"If he perceives him a threat, then most likely." Brick shrugged and rolled his head in a circular motion. They honestly felt sick when it came to Hector and his lackeys. Who would do something so heinous? It wasn't their place to say anything, though.

Just as an awkward silence washed over them and boredom started gripping at their anxious souls, someone in a Santa outfit began approaching them. "Who is this joker?" The man did _not_ look happy. It was Jonah and he was pissed that Carly was forcing him to, not only be a decoy, but to dress as Santa Claus. "Who…are you supposed to be?" Jonah pressed his tongue in his cheek and narrowed his eyes, speaking in a dry and flat tone of voice.

"Ho. Ho. Ho. I'm Santa freaking Claus, who the hell do you _think_ I am?" Jonah tilted his head at Brick and frowned. "Who are you, lardass?" Brick's eyes widened and Chuck stifled a laugh. Brick growled and glared venomously at him, then back to Jonah.

"What did you just call me?"

"I called you a fat-ass and I'm calling your partner a pea-brain." Brick and Chuck dropped their jaws and glared angrily at Jonah, who then proceeded to turn around and smirk. "And you two can kiss my ass!" The men growled and clenched their fists, they were going to beat the shit out of this guy! Amelia watched through the window and sighed, only these two idiots would think to pursue someone obviously provoking them.

"Let's get him." Jonah laughed and ran off, the two men chased him. Amelia moved away from the curtains and rolled her eyes, she'd have to watch over the house herself. This was an obvious attack. "Come here asshole!"

"Move your asses! My grandfather can run faster than this!" Brick and Chuck growled as they reached into their jackets. They were not going to stand for this. Jonah laughed and grabbed a nearby tree with one hand, swirling around it. He reached his other hand in his jacket and pulled out a shotgun. The men watched with wide eyes as he narrowed his eyes and fired a shot into Brick's head.

"Brick!" Chuck fell to his knees as Brick collapsed on the ground before him. "No!" He clenched his hands in the grass and shouted out. "You fucking asshole!" Jonah threw off his robe and grabbed the second sawed off shotgun and smirked dangerously as Chuck turned to him.

"Next time, I suggest you _not_ chase after the decoy."

"What?"

"This is for Freddie, for Valerie, and most of all, for Sam. Just so you know, Chuck. I made a promise ten years ago when Valerie's family came under fire…I would not rest until I saved the Williams family." He took a dangerous step forward as Chuck narrowed his eyes daringly. "Well there's one Williams left, and aside from my daughter, she means the most to me. Nobody's going to stand in my way. Not you, or a wrinkly old hag." Chuck's eyes widened as Jonah cocked the guns. Realizing he was in a losing situation and Amelia may need his help, he turned to run. Shots rang out and he grunted as his body lunged forward, then fell to his knees. Moaning, he swayed his body, trying to keep upright. Jonah walked towards him, kicked him to the ground, then shot him once more, killing him. "Sayonara."

Amelia lay on the floor, holding her side and glaring up at Carly and Ms. Briggs. She'd been tricked, she should have known someone might try to slide down her chimney. Hell, if Santa Claus wasn't an indicator of that, then nothing was. Carly smacked her hands together and smirked at the woman as Jonah came walking up to her. Amelia's eyes widened when she saw his guns smoking and a look of pure determination and malice in his eyes.

"They didn't see it coming." He killed them? No! Pain surged through her body as she struggled to move. God, if she could get up, but that old bitch shot her. She clenched her teeth angrily. Carly knelt down in front of her and narrowed her eyes.

"Now lady, if you don't help us out, I'm going to have my bodyguard shoot you again. You see, there's a difference between a stereotypical actress and a real actress, but the line is a bit hazy. I'm not a stereotypical actress, Ms. Rann. I'm not mean, and above all, I am most certainly not _shallow_." Amelia rolled her eyes and glanced to the side. She didn't care what Carly had to say and wished she'd just get on with the point. She heard a gun click and tensed up, not wanting to be shot again. She gazed at Ms. Briggs, trying not to appear afraid. Carly closed her eyes and slowly breathed out. "However, if you don't help us…I'm not above letting her shoot you again."

In the holding room inside the basement, Freddie sat with his father, his mother, Jake, Amy, and Spencer. They were growing a bit impatient and nervous, but Freddie was holding fast in his belief of Carly. She wouldn't fail, no, her desire to save Sam was just as great as his. "Where are they?" Jake asked as he paced the room. Della looked up at him and sighed.

"Stop pacing, you're making me nervous as hell."

"Well I'm already nervous as hell and I'd rather not die before we can get Sam away from that creep of a father." Amy sneered and Spencer closed his eyes, they all hated Hector with a burning passion. Freddie sighed and gently rested the back of his head on the wall.

"Would all of you guys calm down. The fact remains that those three aren't unconscious and in the room right now, which means they must be doing something right. Whatever they're doing, none of us did." Henry laughed and folded his arms over. He was a bit embarrassed that they'd all been captured, but he had to give that old woman credit where it was due. She was crafty as hell.

"Well, if anything, that woman may have met her match with Carly and Jonah, those two are tough as hell. You remember ten years ago, Valerie's family going through all that crap?" Freddie nodded and the others listened eagerly. "Jonah singlehandedly masterminded their rescue. If anything, he sure as hell isn't going down without a fight."

"That's right, and neither will I." Freddie smirked as explosions began ringing through the air. Everyone shouted and jumped up as the door opened. As the smoke cleared, Carly stood smirking at everyone. Jonah and Ms. Briggs were next to her, grinning. They were ready to take on the enemy.

He gave everyone a pep talk, which sounded to them more like orders than anything. He wanted to know who was with him through this battle and who was not. Each person there had his or her own reason for bringing down Hector and saving Sam and Valerie, so each person there acknowledged their allegiance. Hector was going down.

* * *

We're drawing ever near to the point where Freddie and Jonah bust down that mansion. Jeremy's death...hmm...You may actually _feel sympathy_ at the end of his dying chapter. You'll see what I mean. Obviously it will be the same, but written from his perspective. Well that's chapter 36, next chapter Gibby beats the crap out of him :D


	35. Rage Boils Over

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N: This is the chapter equivalent to the PB chapter "Valerie helps Sam" and this details the events that happened before and _after_ her confrontation with Jeremy. While also during. I needed to figure out why Gibby would let Jeremy near Valerie, and I figured something out. The title of the chapter is for Gibby.

* * *

Chapter 35 (Rage Boils Over)

Jeremy was speaking to Hector on the phone, his face pale as a bed sheet. He'd received news that his girlfriend, along with Gibby's and Nevel's, was dead. Hector had their sons and would be raising them. Normally he wouldn't care, but he had felt something strong for that woman. Perhaps he deserved this, for all the evil and vain things that he'd done. Hanging up the phone, he turned away and sped out, looking more like a devil than perhaps he'd ever appeared. He stepped in front of the two bedrooms and shouted.

"Gibby! Nevel! Get your asses up, we have to talk!" The men were heard groaning inside. Jeremy tapped his foot on the floor and waited for the two, growing ever more impatient by the second. They came out of their respective bedrooms and looked to him as though they were ready to kill him. Gibby was the first to speak, as Nevel still wasn't all that awake yet.

"What do you want Jeremy? What's so important?"

"Hector and Victor found our women and children." Nevel's eyes shot open in shock, he was definitely awake now. This was bad news, very bad news. Gibby froze and slowly shook his head.

"What do you mean? You don't think…"

"Our women are dead. Now Hector and Victor are going to raise our children to be just like us. Little, sadistic, cretins." All said with a gleaming, sarcastic smile. Nevel coughed as Gibby fell to his knees. His entire world was crashing down before him. What could they do? What could be done? Jeremy sniffed the air and felt a strange aroma begin teasing his nostrils. Who was cooking food at such a late hour, and why? His eyes widened as he swiftly turned around and stared into the kitchen, there was nobody in there. "Say, speaking of people who've got it _lucky_, where the hell is Valerie." Gibby rose sharply at the mention of her name, his mind quickly turning over to the defensive. He couldn't have Jeremy doing anything to her. Jeremy scanned the room with his eyes and growled when he saw the basement door cracked open. "That bitch! She's feeding Sam, isn't she?"

"Come on Jeremy," Nevel said as he watched Jeremy's chest start huffing. He knew what explosion was about to happen. "Cut her some slack for once, you know this wasn't the life for her to begin with."

"Shut the fuck up!" Jeremy grabbed Nevel's shirt collar and the weaker man whined. Gibby watched this display, then looked to the basement door, pondering whether he should go down and warn Valerie. "You're going to be on my side whether you want to or not, do you understand that? You've been on my side for ten years, so don't you _dare_ start jumping ship on me! I am your fucking captain and you _will_ listen to me! Do I make myself clear?" Nevel frowned and Gibby raised a curious eyebrow. Jeremy growled impatiently and shook Nevel. "I said, do I make myself clear!" Nevel whimpered as Jeremy glared into his eyes with a malice that burned brighter than the sun. He didn't want any trouble, and he certainly didn't want Jeremy kicking his ass.

"Yes! Yes, I'm sorry! I won't question you again!" Gibby rolled his eyes as Jeremy released Nevel, smirking with satisfaction. He wasn't going to do that with Gibby, because he knew well enough to know the difference between him and Nevel. Nevel wouldn't stand up for himself or the things he believed in, Gibby would, and when he did, he was as dangerous as a raging inferno. He needed at least one of the two men at his side, so of course, it was Nevel that was his sidekick.

"Okay, let's go have a chat with Miss Williams." Gibby breathed in deeply and narrowed his gaze upon Jeremy.

"Just don't take it too far, Jeremy."

"You shut up." Gibby rolled his eyes once more and the men walked into the basement. They heard Sam and Valerie chatting amongst themselves, it seemed that Sam had a little bit more strength in her voice now.

"Actually Sam, this was completely forbidden by Jonah, but I'm just getting a bit tired of waiting…" Sam looked at her curiously, chewing her food. "I want to run you through the mansion and get you out of here."

"Jonah's right, Val. That's too dangerous, especially if we run into the guys."

"Well…Hector's not here and you have that knife now, so it should be a little safer." Jeremy chuckled inwardly and motioned to Nevel, who nodded and moved towards the girls. So Valerie was thinking of betraying them? Well, he'd have to teach her a little lesson of ethics.

Sam's eyes widened and she nearly dropped her fork as Nevel approached Valerie from behind and cupped his hand over her mouth. She let out a muffled groan as Nevel spoke the words he thought Jeremy would want him to say. "So what are you doing Valerie? Cooking for this girl when you should be cooking for _us?_ It's not acceptable." Valerie bit his hand and he screamed out, releasing his hold. Gibby smirked with pride and Jeremy growled as he pulled Nevel back and glared into Valerie's eyes.

"You're not betraying us, are you?"

"I was never with you to begin with!" Jeremy frowned as Valerie clenched her fists up. Sam swallowed and slowly reached into her pocket, cradling the knife with her fingers. She wasn't afraid of these three men, not anymore, she wouldn't allow herself to be fearful.

"Bitch…" Jeremy slapped her in the face and sent her crashing to the ground. Gibby's eyes widened and he closed his fists, he was so ready to dive in. Valerie moaned and her body shook as blood trickled from her lip. "You _never_ help the fucking captive!" He looked to Nevel and motioned with his head towards Gibby. Nevel nodded and stepped behind Gibby, picking up a rock from the ground. Valerie's eyes widened when she saw this action and she called out.

"Gibby! Behind you!" It was too late, Nevel sent the rock crashing onto the back of his head. Jeremy smirked and Sam took a step back from the scene, she knew the danger of the situation now. If Gibby was out, that meant Jeremy could do whatever he wanted without risk of injury. "No! Gibby! Get up!" Valerie scrambled past Jeremy and landed next to Gibby, shaking him as her eyes misted over. Jeremy laughed and grabbed her hair, yanking her to her feet. "No!"

"Now that your little 'guardian' is out of commission, there's no one to stop me from doing what I really want to do to you." Valerie turned her fearful eyes upon Jeremy as he slammed her into the wall. She screamed out and he punched her in the abdomen. "I'm going to teach you a lesson you won't soon forget, and maybe you'll learn what happens to little girls who don't follow fucking orders!" She cried as she fell to the ground.

"Please stop! Don't kill me!" She held her arm above her face as Jeremy scowled down at her, ten year's worth of rage plowing through him. Nevel groaned and turned away, he couldn't bear to see this.

"Kill you?" He growled dangerously, his eyes glinting with hatred. "I'm not going to _kill_ you, I'm going to fuck you over so hard until you lose every bit of hope you ever held." Valerie gasped as Jeremy pulled her up and slammed her back against the wall. "You see, Hector's little 'no touching' rule that he has? He's not here now, and he's not going to know about this, now is he, Valerie?"

"P-Please Jeremy, don't do this…"

"Let's see what your fucking boyfriend's holding out for, shall we?" Valerie whimpered as Jeremy grabbed her shirt and glared into her eyes. Sam's eyes widened crazily as she tightened her grip onto her knife. This was bad. She couldn't let them do to Valerie what Hector had done to her. No, that wasn't going to happen. Not on her watch. She growled vehemently and pulled her knife from her pocket, bravery coursing through her veins. She ignored every bit of fear she ever had, for now Valerie's life, her soul, everything about her was at stake.

"You leave her alone, you fucking bastard!" Jeremy froze and Valerie's eyes widened in shock. Nevel staggered around, gazing at Sam with surprise. This was new to them. Valerie's eyes reflected the glint of a knife rising into the air and crashing down into Jeremy's back. He yelled and released Valerie, crashing to the floor.

"Son of a bitch! Jesus!" Nevel cupped his hand over his mouth, stifling a laugh. This was going to be fun when he told Gibby what Jeremy had just done, along with Sam. Valerie sank to the floor, her eyes wide and shaking, her heart pounding and her limbs trembling. Sam stepped in front of her and glared down at Jeremy as he rose to his forearms and knees.

"Touch Valerie again and I'll _kill_ you!"

"You…you'll get yours, bitch…"

"So will you! You better _pray_ Jonah doesn't hear what you just tried to do!" Jeremy roared as he rose to his feet and glared into Sam's eyes. He heard a moaning and looked over to see Gibby, eyes closed, but lips moving.

_"Shit, he's waking…"_ He would have to finish things up here anyway. It was too late to do anything with Valerie, plus he needed to medicate his wounds. "Fine then." He grabbed Valerie's wrist and pulled her up. "But she still needs to be punished." Sam saw Gibby waking and new Jeremy was a fool as much as he was stupid, and stupid, he was not. He wouldn't _dare_ try anything with Valerie while Gibby was awake and there. Valerie whimpered and looked away from him. "I'm locking you in the highest room, away from everyone. You can come out when _I_ say you can." Valerie screamed as Jeremy pulled her away, he ignored Nevel helping Gibby awake.

"Shit, what happened?" Gibby asked as he rubbed the back of his head, finally adjusting completely after several minutes. He saw Sam holding a bloody knife in her hand and raised his eyebrows. "Uh…Sam? What did you do?" He looked from her, then to Nevel. Remembering what Nevel had done, he growled and slammed Nevel against the wall, gripping his shirt tightly. "What the fuck was that for? You fucking loyal son of a bitch! You knock me out, and for what? So Jeremy can abuse Valerie somehow? Is that it? I'm going to kill you!" His eyes burned and Nevel whimpered. He didn't want to be loyal to Jeremy anymore, not after what just happened.

"No! I'm not with him anymore! He makes me sick!"

"You couldn't have figured that out ten fucking years ago?" Gibby slammed his fist into Nevel's abdomen, causing him to spit up blood. "Instead you listen to his every goddamn order! Well guess what…" Gibby gripped his arms firmly and Nevel whimpered again as Gibby slammed his knee into Nevel. "Once I'm done with you, I'm going to-"

"Wait! Let me say something!"

"Why the _fuck_ should I let you talk? You never stand for anything, if I thought for a second you'd speak up for something you believed in, then I'd let you talk."

"I am! I don't believe what Jeremy was trying to do to Valerie was right!" Gibby paused, his anger at Nevel simmering down just a bit now as confusion and concern started to wash over. He leaned his head back some and narrowed his glare into Nevel's eyes.

"What was he trying to do?"

"He was trying to…he was going to rape her, but Sam stabbed him in the back." Gibby's eyes widened, his anger spiking up and shooting through the roof. Sam closed her eyes as he roared and threw Nevel to the floor.

"What? Where is he?"

"He locked her in the room upstairs, he needs to fix his stab wound up."

"The fucking bastard is _dead!"_ Gibby charged through the door as Nevel moaned and collapsed, just wanting to lay there for a while now.

Gibby found Jeremy outside of the room he'd locked Valerie up in, he found his wound wasn't too serious and debilitating. He looked over and saw Gibby's eyes filling up with that raging fire that he hated. Gibby was seething, his chest heaving and his fists clenched so hard, one would think they'd begin bleeding. There was only one explanation for this. He knew. _"Oh shit…"_

"Jeremy!" Gibby grabbed his throat and slammed him up against the wall, making sure to apply pressure to where the knife wound was. Jeremy winced as Gibby began pounding his fist into Jeremy's abdomen. "What the _fuck_ were you thinking? Knocking me out so you can try and get to Valerie like that. You're a fucking bastard, you know that?"

"I've been told…" Jeremy was trying his best to remain calm, as he really didn't want to get too into the fight. He hadn't done anything more to Valerie, nor was he going to. At least not right now. "I was just pissed off, that was all."

"That's no excuse!" Gibby backhanded him, then kneed him in the crotch. Jeremy's eyes widened and he let out a painful shout. Okay, so he deserved that one. "You're lucky I don't kill you, but the only reason I'm not going to kill you is because I'd rather not have to explain to Hector why I had to jump your ass! I can assure you if he finds out anyone of us killed another, he'll be more pissed off…though I'm tempted to believe that the reason for killing you is much more satisfying and would make it easier to deal with Hector's anger."

"Oh come on! You can't expect me to believe that you honestly aren't jealous of everything Valerie has!" Gibby narrowed his eyes and slammed his fist into Jeremy once more. He wasn't, he was happy for her. "She has fucking _hope_, she has a family, a life to go back to, _we don't_. Do you understand that? Nobody gives a shit about us, nobody's there waiting for us!" Jeremy's eyes started to tear up as he was finally opening up and showing his true fears and concerns. "We have _no one_. Now that our own women are dead, we really have nothing. Freddie and Jonah could fucking kill us and nobody would _care_."

"Nobody would give a shit if they killed Hector either."

"Exactly, and we've become so much like him…"

"Correction, I'm _nothing_ like Hector and you're _worse_ than the fucking guy. At least he has his morals, as weird as some of them are." Jeremy screamed as Gibby shook him and slammed him several times into the wall, still pissed at him. "So you want to go on, I don't want to hear it! What you've done is _inexcusable! Unforgiveable!"_

"I'm sorry!"

"Apologies won't do shit for you! If Freddie and Jonah actually do find us, which I don't think they will, I'll gladly put you in front of Jonah and watch him have fun blowing your fucking brains out on the floor!" Gibby raised his hand and Jeremy closed his eyes, looking away and expecting him to punch him yet again. Wasn't he bloody enough, now? Gibby pointed his index finger out and grabbed Jeremy's face with his other hand, turning his gaze toward him and clenching tightly on the man's face. "If you touch her again, if you do so much as _speak_ to her, I'm going to throw you down these stairs and watch your neck snap. I'll torture you so fucking badly that it'll make Sam look like we've been treating her like a fucking princess for ten years. Do _I_ make myself clear?"

"Please…" Gibby chuckled once and narrowed his eyes. Jeremy was begging now, was he? It was good to know he was finally getting through to the sick fiend.

"I _said_ do I make myself clear?"

"Yes! I won't do anything more to her! I swear it!" Gibby let out a grunt and through Jeremy to the ground, kicking him sharply one last time for effect. Jeremy cried out as Gibby placed a foot onto Jeremy's back.

"Good. Oh, and the same thing goes for Nevel too. God knows that little prick needs _some_ help." Jeremy huffed and panted as Gibby turned him onto his back with his foot, then began walking off. He was satisfied with the turnout. Jeremy watched Gibby's departing figure as his vision began turning black.

* * *

Next chapter, the battle for the girls begins, and we see Jeremy's fall in "Jeremy Muerte Solamente"


	36. Jeremy Muerte Solamente

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N: At the point in the story, where I'm at in the written sense, Valerie's family is HUGE! Anyway, enjoy the chapter. Jeremy dies. Hopefully you'll give me your thoughts on the last one too XD

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Chapter 36 (Jeremy Muere Solamente)

Sam sat in her cell, still holding onto the knife and praying that Valerie was safe. Gibby ran out in such a rush, she _had_ to be protected. In truth, in the last year or two, or however long it had been, they had not tortured her as badly as when they first had her. Perhaps they were becoming weary of it. She couldn't help but to wonder what would happen if Freddie really _did_ come for her. Would Gibby and Nevel die? Would Jeremy die? Ten years of hell for every one of them, what was there for them to live for? In truth, she felt bad for each of them. She had Freddie, she had Angie, she had people waiting for her. Valerie had her family, she had Jonah, she had Rachel. There was a life for her to return to, people to love her and tell her she was okay. People to hug them, people to kiss them. Gibby, Jeremy, and Nevel did not have these things, nor would they ever have them. She understood this, and she honestly worried for them.

In her trance, she hadn't noticed Valerie's watch radio next to her was going off, someone was shouting into it. It was Freddie and Jonah, they were trying to reach her! They were near! They were there! Her heart lifted and she slowly reached for the watch, fearing with each move that Jeremy might walk in at any second. She grabbed the watch and gripped her knife firmly in her hands. What if he came back for her? What if he came to finish the job? Would he kill her? Ignoring her thoughts, she figured out the talk button and spoke. "Freddie?" Her voice was cracking, tired, muffled, and certainly aged.

"What!" She winced, it seemed he was annoyed with someone or something. He cleared his throat upon realization that it was her voice. "Sam? Is that you? What are you doing with Valerie's radio?" Thinking back to the whole charade with Jeremy, Valerie must have dropped the watch without realizing it. "We're almost there Sam, you're going to be okay…" She wiped a tear and sighed softly.

"I guess she dropped it. Jonah, don't be mad at her. She made me food." Jonah's eyebrows rose and fear spread through him. He told her not to do anything that might endanger herself! "Please find her first, though. Jeremy got her."

"What? They have Valerie?" Sam winced again and Jonah softened himself as Freddie placed a hand on his shoulder and spoke quietly.

"It's okay Jonah, we will get her." Sam couldn't help but to smile at their determination and bravery. Freddie was really the only man she trusted to get her out of this hell. She wasn't sure if she could really trust any man, but there were a select few that seemed decent enough to her. "Sam, we will find you, okay? If they return, don't do anything to piss them off. Once we're in the basement, we will let you know we're there." Next, Carly's voice came over the radio and Sam felt her heart jump even more. She knew her best friend wouldn't forget her!

"Ten years is too long, Sam. I refuse to lose you again. There's a bunch of guards out here, so we'll have to pile through them first. Won't be difficult. See you soon, Sammy." The transmission clicked off and she lowered her knife, a serene look appearing on her face for the first time in so long. Freddie was _here_, and for _her_. She looked out her padded door in time to see Nevel get up and run out of the basement, finally having regained consciousness. This could be bad.

Jeremy regained consciousness in time to hear the firing outside. He stared out the window and groaned when he saw all the guards on the floor being blown away by a large group of people. He should have known they'd be coming. Thinking fast, he ran into another room that was on the very top floor, they had at least one room on each floor filled with guns and other weapons. He smirked as he pulled a rocket launcher out. Hector might get pissed to find his large mansion blown apart by rockets, but hey, whatever it took to kill these people. He heard Valerie talking in her room and frowned as he pressed his ear to the door.

"I should let you know. Jeremy…he…he tried to rape me." Jeremy paled as he moved from the door. Whoever she was talking to, he prayed it wasn't Jonah. He was normally over confident, but when it came to dealing with Jonah, he wasn't too sure how good he'd be against him. Hell, Jonah killed everyone that held a member of the Williams family hostage, how was he any different?

He heard footsteps rushing up the stairs and quickly hid behind a wall. Jonah was with Della, Henry, and Jake. Jeremy cussed mentally and looked away, how the hell was he supposed to deal with all four of them. Suddenly he remembered the rocket launcher he was carrying and smirked. That was right, there was no way in bloody hell they'd beat him with this gun.

As they ran past him and down the hallway leading to Valerie's room, Jeremy stepped out from the wall and cleared his throat. The group stopped and peered at him as he hid the rocket launcher behind his back. "So, it's nice to see you again, traitor." Jonah narrowed his eyes and clenched his hand tightly on the guns that he had. He was going to be sure to blow this man's brains out after what he'd just been told. Jeremy scanned the guns they all had and smirked. "Nice guns, they sure blow _mine_ away." He pulled his rocket launcher out and the others stared in surprise, except Jonah, who simply shrugged it off.

"You'd honestly use _that_ in a mansion?"

"Yes." Jonah raised his eyebrow and nodded slowly, looking to the others.

"You guys go for Valerie, I'll take care of this bastard." Jake frowned and nodded, knowing why he wanted to deal with Jeremy. After all these years, the hate, along with all other emotions, had to have built up to boiling point by now. Hell, Jonah was so pissed that he'd expect there to be nukes going off everywhere.

"Create hell, Jonah." Jake ran towards the door with Henry and Della, they had no choice but to trust Jonah. Jeremy watched them with a frown and shrugged as he pointed the rockets toward Jonah, who had his gaze narrowed and was fantasizing about all the ways he'd kill Jeremy.

"I've waited a _long_ time for this, Jeremy. Now that we finally meet face to face, I'm going to make damn certain you regret everything you've ever done. Too bad when you die, you won't be going where your father went. Enjoy hell, Jeremy."

"Fuck you!" Jeremy pulled the trigger and Jonah leapt to the side in time to miss the rocket. He looked back as the rocket crashed into a wall and erupted in an explosion. He clenched his teeth and saw Jake and the others stare back with wide eyes.

"Keep going!" Jake nodded and motioned the two to continue running. Jeremy growled as Jonah pulled himself to his feet and fired shots at Jeremy. He needed to get Jeremy out of this area, and fast. Jeremy doubled over as one of the shots hit him in the abdomen. He placed his hand on his stomach, ignoring the pain, and glared at Jonah as the man ran past him.

"Where the fuck are you going, coward!" Jonah looked back as Jeremy begun to chase him. Jonah ran in serpentine fashion as Jeremy continued to fire shots. His mind reeled as he avoided each exploding bullet that shook the entire building. If this kept up, the whole floor might collapse. He turned towards the stairs and began running down them. "What? You didn't take the elevator?"

"And be stupid enough to let you blow the elevator up and send it hurdling down nearly twenty floors? Fuck no!" Jonah turned around and ran backwards as he fired off a round of bullets to Jeremy. Jeremy fired one last shot, which landed in the middle of the stairs. The force of the explosion sent Jonah flying. "Shit!" Thinking fast, he grabbed the rail of the stairs and looked down, he did _not_ want to fall. He looked to Jeremy and frowned as the man smirked dangerously and pointed the rocket launcher towards him.

"Looks like you're trapped."

"Cheap, man, very cheap." He tightened his grip on the railing and peered down at the rails below him. He could attempt a fall and try to grab the rails below, but could he trust that? A clicking noise was heard and he shifted his gaze to Jeremy. Jeremy grunted and stared at his rocket with a disappointed scowl.

"Fuck!" Jonah laughed and pulled himself up over the railing. Jeremy was out of ammo. He flipped over the railing and grinned as Jeremy glared at him, throwing his rocket launcher over the edge.

"Well, you've all but collapsed the stairs…only to run out of ammunition." Jonah clapped his hands together and chuckled. "Amazing job, dumbass!" Jonah pointed his machine gun to Jeremy and smirked. "Now it's my turn."

"Well at least you can't get up here…" People could likely get down the stairs, though it'd be very difficult. The large gap in the middle pretty much prevented that fact. The fact that Jonah couldn't chase him, made it very likely for him to get away. The malice running through Jonah's veins was greater than any amount of hate he'd ever felt before. This was the final showdown, he was not letting Jeremy get away with the things he had done. Shooting him would not be satisfying enough, no, not satisfying at all. He narrowed his eyes and stared at the steps below Jeremy.

"No, but I do know what I _can_ do to you." He began to open fire and Jeremy shouted as he jumped to the side, but realized that Jonah hadn't hit him at all. He began laughing insanely as Jonah raised his eyebrow.

"You fucking moron! You can't aim! You didn't even _graze_ me!" Jonah closed his eyes and shrugged nonchalantly.

"Wasn't aiming for you."

"What?" The steps began cracking and Jeremy's eyes widened as he gripped the railing. "What's going on?" He began shaking, but only because the steps were moving him around. He looked below and yelled out. "You fucking asswipe! You tried to blow the steps!"

"Now you're catching on!" Jonah grinned deviously as Jeremy took a daring leap from the steps crumbling below him. He cursed and gripped the edge of the steps on the gap next to Jonah, watching as the steps behind him collapsed.

"Shit that was close!" Jonah narrowed his eyes and walked up to him, smacking his lips together a couple times. Jeremy drifted his eyes up and moaned. He had a grip of these steps with only one hand, the fight with Gibby earlier made him far too weak to pull himself up.

"Well, you're a bloody mess." Jeremy closed his eyes and swallowed. This was really it, wasn't it? This was how he would die. He should have known it would all end this way. Pure irony, in his eyes, the one to kill him would be Jonah, of all people. It wasn't fair, it just wasn't fair. "This is for Valerie." Jeremy opened his eyes and began to tremble as Jonah moved his foot over his fingers. Jonah narrowed his eyes as Jeremy shook his hand.

"Please, you wouldn't."

"No. I would. I'm pretty sure I would."

"Motherfucker…"

"Call me whatever you like, I don't care. This is the cost of all your crimes. For torturing Sam, and for having _ever_ laid a hand on Valerie." Jeremy growled as Jonah began to press down on his fingers.

"F-Fuck…" He shouted as pain surged through him and he lost his grip on the steps. "You!" He started to fall, the last thing he saw was Jonah sneering down at him. As he made his descent, he closed his eyes. There was nothing below to catch him, and falling twenty stories was not survivable. _"Dad…"_ His father's image came into his mind. He knew the old man wouldn't be proud of the things he had done. He'd lost his mind, he'd lost his soul.

He recalled the days of his youth, when he used to have that infernal cold. The days when Sam would tease him. Innocent teasing, that's all it ever was. Tears dripped from his eyes as his body turned over and his head began plummeting towards the ground. Why was it they did all this? Why did he go through all this? Revenge? He had become a maniac because of _innocent teasing_? That was it? That was all?

He crashed into the ground and blood spewed everywhere. He slowly opened his eyes. Why had he not died instantly? Far above him, he saw Valerie leap the gap that was between her and Jonah. Jonah caught her, holding her tight in his arms for the first time, never letting her go. Jeremy's lips curled upwards and he closed his eyes. Valerie and Sam would be going home today, for the first time in ten years. _"Innocent teasing. I ruined my own life because of this. Dad would never have died…if I never…started the whole thing…Those fucking bastards…"_ It was his fault, all his fault.

His back was now drenched with his blood as it began to pool all around him. The pain was unbearable. He'd never felt so much pain in his life. _"This must be how Sam felt for ten years. I can't even imagine this."_ His heart wrenched as his organs began failing, one by one. _"Aren't you supposed to die instantly? Oh god, why are you doing this to me? Please just let me die! God, God, God…please, god…WHERE ARE YOU?"_ He started to sob, unable to move his limbs. Had God forsaken him? No, he'd turned his back on God. He never believed, not like his father. He tried, but he could never place a finger on the whole religion thing. He found it ironic, he never believed in God, but here he was, begging for whatever God was up there to end his pain.

Sam was a believer, she'd never lost hope that one day she'd be rescued, and here that day came. Frown lines creased around his lips as he opened his eyes and stared blankly into the air. It was his fault he had nothing, he knew that now. Sam would have everything. At least when her time came, she wouldn't be alone. Hell, she wasn't 'alone' these ten years, either, as Valerie was right there with her through it all. He coughed and blood poured from his mouth. Those two girls were believers, they'd go to heaven when their time came. He knew his pain wasn't over. The angels would cloak those two girls with love, ending all their pain, but his pain would never end. He gave up, as he lay there, dying slowly, painfully, and worst of all, alone.

Someone stepped next to him, someone that only he could see. He groaned and looked up at the figure, it was his father. "P-Papa? Is that really you?" The figure stared at him as he continued to sob uncontrollably. "Please Papa, it hurts. Why does it hurt? Help me, stop the hurt Papa, stop the pain! _Please_!" He could see his father's face, his father's very angry and disappointed face. "I'm sorry papa, I lost it when you died. I'm sorry papa, papa please." The figure started to change into that of a cloaked figure whose face was hidden. Fear spread through Jeremy as his silent tears dripped to the blood drenched ground. His father really wasn't there. Even in the end, his own father had shunned him. It would be the last time he'd ever seen his father's appearance, not that he deserved it. "La muerte, me toma, para mí merece morir. No soy nada."

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Basically at the end, he says to death to take him, that he is ready and that he deserves it. He dies a painful death, alone.


	37. Goodbye Gibby

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

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Chapter 37 (Goodbye Gibby)

Gibby and Nevel winced as they heard Jeremy's scream and sickening thud. The building had ceased to rumble and everything became still and quiet. Gibby looked at Nevel with a look of sadness in his eyes. Nevel closed his eyes and let out an exasperated sigh , he knew what was coming. Death. Ten years, and it all led up to this. Gibby gave him a serious nod and pulled a magnum pistol from his pocket and gripped a dagger in his other hand. It was not as though they wanted to die, they _had_ to die. "You're going first, Gibby?"

"Yes. After this…you're up." Nevel felt his stomach clench up. He hated to have to watch Gibby die. "Let's just hope we don't suffer as badly as Jeremy." They weren't sure if he did suffer. A fall from that height was bound to kill him instantaneously. "You know we would die anyway if we made it through this. Hector would come after us." What did they have to live for, anyway? They'd given it some serious thought and debate, but neither man could think of anything. "Valerie's safe, Sam will be safe too. That's what is important, do you understand, Nevel?" Nevel slowly nodded his head and swallowed hard. He knew he'd give a good fight, just as Gibby would. They didn't want Freddie's group going soft on them. Not that they thought they would. Gibby closed his eyes as Freddie and Carly turned the corner and came into view. Spencer and Amy were not far behind. _"Sylvia, I'll be with you shortly_." He looked to Nevel one final time and breathed out. "Nevel, you remember what we talked about?"

"Yeah, God and everything?"

"Right." They'd recently become believers in an almighty God and the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. It was Sylvia that converted Gibby, and Gibby had read Nevel some scriptures. "Have you…prayed for forgiveness?" He turned his head and frowned. "Sorry, that's between you and God." They didn't think Sam would ever forgive them. Hell, nobody would ever forgive them, probably. But they were changed men as far as they were concerned. Gibby grunted and leapt from behind the wall, scaring both Freddie and Carly as he slashed at them with his knife. "Die, you two!"

"Gibby?" Carly dodged his attack while Freddie ducked under him. Carly growled and Freddie aimed his revolver towards him. Gibby huffed and narrowed his eyes, glaring at Freddie as he stepped forward. "Now Gibby, I don't want to have to kill you. Let this end peacefully. Just let us grab Sam." Gibby closed his eyes and frowned heavily. The immense guilt he had felt as though he had heavy weights just dragging him down. He wanted them to rescue her, he wanted them to get her out. He would love to let this be peaceful, but there was no chance in hell of that happening and his remaining alive.

"Over my dead body." It was to his advantage that Carly and Freddie did not know too much about how he treated Valerie, or how he'd, in recent years, become the sworn 'protector' of both the girls. He didn't want them to know, not now. In order for him to ensure his death, they needed to _hate_ him, or at least have no other choice but to kill him. He aimed his pistol and fired a shot at Freddie, making sure not to strike anywhere serious. Freddie dodged his shot and growled.

"You're not making this any easier!"

"I'm sorry, am I supposed to _want_ you to save Sam, thus pissing Hector off to the point where he wants to kill us all?" Freddie scowled as Gibby ran behind a post. Freddie crouched behind a couch while Carly moved behind a post, ready to try and swing around Gibby.

"Come on Gibby! It doesn't have to end this way!"

"The fuck you think it doesn't!" Gibby stepped out from behind his post and fired a shot at the couch Freddie was hiding behind. Freddie quickly got up and fired off a round of bullets at Gibby. "Ah shit!" He ducked back behind his wall and looked to his arm, he'd been hit. He paused momentarily to look up to the sky. _"Sylvia, look after me. I'll be there…God, Sylvia, if you can make this painless, I know I have no right to ask that after everything…"_ A gunshot hit the pillar he was hiding behind and jarred him back to reality. He shouted and looked over just as Carly came swinging her knife around on him. Thinking fast, he ducked under and kicked Carly in the abdomen.

"Damn it Gibby!" He smirked and ran from the pillar. Freddie opened fire upon him and he quickly rolled underneath a table. Freddie narrowed his eyes and shifted his gaze to the table, ceasing his fire.

"Gibby, why do you persist? You're outnumbered." Gibby smirked dangerously and the sun glinted off his tooth.

"That's what you think. I can be a fucking one man army!" He fired a gunshot and Freddie ducked behind the couch, holding his revolver close and growling. "So I guess Jeremy's dead and they got Valerie. Well, one down and one to go, right Freddo? I bet you want to kill Hector more than anything, don't you?" Freddie narrowed his eyes as Carly pressed her back against the pillar. "Think you're good enough to do shit? You're not! You're pathetic, that's what you are!"

"Gibby, that's enough!" He knew Gibby was trying to provoke him, and as much as he didn't want to admit it, it was working.

"I'm not sure what's more pathetic. You waiting ten years for one girl, or the fact that not _once_ did you suspect Hector and you let him get so fucking close! I thought you were _smart_, Freddie! You're dumb as shit!" Freddie growled and Carly looked worriedly at him. "I guess you're nothing. What do you think's going to happen when you get Sam? You think it's going to be easy?" Gibby rushed from under the table and charged toward the couch. "Come on Freddie! Let's see if you got what it takes!" Carly swirled around as he passed her and dug her knife into his back. He grunted and the pain hit him, but dissipated almost as quickly as it came. Freddie rose from the couch, his face twisted in pure anger.

"Fuck it Gibby, there's no saving you!" He fired a gunshot into Gibby's abdomen and frowned. Gibby smiled as he staggered back and placed his hand on his stomach. The cool, inviting blood gushed through his fingers and he looked up into the sky. It didn't hurt much, but it was just another step closer to his ultimate goal.

"Is that what you think? Really?" He turned his gaze onto Freddie and fired another gunshot, grazing his shoulder. "You think I want to be _saved_, asshole? There's no need to 'save' me, fucker." Freddie frowned as Gibby swung around him and punched him swiftly in the back.

"I've tried telling you that you don't _have_ to go out like this!" Freddie wrapped his arm around Gibby's neck and started to twist him. Gibby struggled and threw his fist into Freddie's chest. Freddie shouted as he was thrown against the back of the couch.

"If you think you're going to save Sam, you have to go through me first!" Freddie groaned and wiped the blood that was trickling from his mouth off. Carly wanted to tell Freddie to relax, she could see from the look in his eyes that he was getting too serious. Sure, nothing was going to stop him from saving Sam, and Gibby _was_ making it more difficult.

"If that's what you want, Gibby. So be it." He didn't think it was necessary to kill Gibby, he knew that the guy looked like he _wanted_ to die. "Carly, let's get him."

"Right Freddie." Gibby shouted and turned to Carly, firing off a shot. She shouted and ducked away from him. What the hell was he doing? Didn't he know fighting them right now was suicide? She had all her grenades around her hip, Freddie had the damn good gun, and all Gibby had was a knife and pistol. Gibby charged Carly and raised his dagger.

"Die, woman! I have news for you. One, all your movies suck ass, and two…you're the most fucking shallow actress on the face of this earth!" Carly's eyes widened and anger spiked through her. How _dare_ he say that about her! Her movies weren't that bad, but she could understand someone saying that. Hell, she'd endured some of the harshest critics on the face of the earth, but to say she was _shallow_. Oh no, that was unforgiveable. Freddie raised his eyebrow as Gibby brought his knife down onto Carly. She roared with anger and clashed her own dagger with his.

"I am _not_ shallow!" She punched him hard in the abdomen, brought her knife down and slit him across the chest. He moaned and started moving backwards as she continued to press onward, slashing him in the sides, the stomach, the chest, and punching him in the face multiple times. This was more than he'd asked for, but he felt that he deserved every cut. "First you take my best friend away from me, you torture her for ten years, you willingly work with Hector, even after he killed your family off, and now you decide to fight us so we can't save Sam? I don't _think_ so!"

"That's it!" Gibby laughed and looked up to the ceiling as Carly kicked him across the room. "Keep it coming, Shay!" He shouted profanities at her, cursing her and downing her movies. "I hated every minute of iCarly, I hated it all!"

"You asshole!" That one struck her deeply. Freddie knew this was going on far enough and was ready to step in. He knew what Gibby was doing now. Gibby didn't mean anything he was saying, he just simply wanted to die. He knew he wasn't going to be able to get Freddie hard enough, but he knew how to hit Carly deep enough to make her want to kill him.

"Carly! Carly that's enough!" Gibby moved onto his hands and knees, coughing as blood flowed like rivers onto the floor. His left arm fell and his body shook horribly. His eyes drifted over as a grenade rolled next to him.

_"Shit…"_ Freddie grabbed Carly aside and watched with terror as the grenade went off. Gibby cussed as he felt his right and left leg being torn from his body, going one way as he flew in another direction.

"Gibby! Carly, that was a bit much!" Carly frowned as Freddie ran over to Gibby's body. Gibby was staring up at the ceiling, with only Sylvia on his mind. He smiled serenely as Freddie and Carly surrounded him. "Gibby, Gibby man…"

"Freddie…Carly…Thank you." The two looked at each other in confusion, then back to him. Tears streamed from his eyes as his pain began to go away. "I knew you wouldn't kill me otherwise…I had to…" He coughed as Freddie clenched his eyes shut. Carly frowned and guilt nipped at her from all over. "I protected Valerie up until now, I started protecting Sam lately…I know what I did was wrong, and there is nothing for me to return to. Death…only choice…"

"We could have _helped_ you, Gibby." Gibby slowly shook his head as a figure clothed in white approached him. He smiled when he saw her face, it was Sylvia. Behind her, his mother, and his father. His little brother was nowhere, and it wasn't until then that he realized it. The day they died, Guppy was with his grandfather for that week.

"But I had everything to die for…please…don't let Valerie see my body like this. It would devastate her, as for the last ten years…Sam and I were her only friends." Freddie held his eyes shut as Spencer and Amy ran up behind them. Gibby coughed and blood streamed from his mouth. God he didn't want a painful death. "Please…I want to be with Sylvia…with my family…"

"Gibby…" Freddie opened his eyes and tears streamed out. "I don't know what it was like for you in the past ten years…" He moved his revolver to Gibby's chest, his body shaking. He hadn't wanted to have to do this to anyone and never dreamed he'd have to actually shoot Gibby. "But if you truly did protect Valerie, and then even Sam…then…thank you." Gibby looked at the apparitions before him and smiled as he closed his eyes. He felt them reach into him and grab hold of his soul. "Goodbye Gibby." Freddie shot into Gibby's heart, killing him instantly. It was for mercy, so he wouldn't have to die a slow, painful death. "You don't have to die alone."

_"I wasn't alone."_ Gibby's apparition stood next to those he loved as they hugged him close. He smiled happily and looked over to see a red ghost glaring spitefully at him. "You don't need to watch, Jeremy…just let yourself go. You know they'll save her now, it's over." Gibby watched as Freddie and Carly talked, moved his body to hiding, then started to head to the basement door where Nevel jumped in front of them, tears in his eyes and a heart ready and willing to die. Freddie and Carly went on to the basement while Spencer and Amy dealt with Nevel.

It was not long before Nevel too was dead, having been gunned down by Spencer's sniper and Amy's Barrett gun. Nevel's apparition appeared next to Gibby and he saw his mother waiting for him. Tears in his eyes, he ran to her and she hugged him tightly. Gibby smiled at the sight and looked over to see Jeremy scowling at them. He lifted his head and howled as pain surged through his body and the cracks he received from his fall shone bright on his arms, legs, head, torso, and back. Red smoke flowed from them and poured out of every hole on his body. Gibby and Nevel looked away, disgusted and afraid. Jeremy's howling increased and a black hole opened beneath him.

"No! I'm not ready! No! No, no, no! Help me! Somebody help me!" He scratched his hands in the air as his body slowly began to sink. Nevel and Gibby knew this could have been them, and were grateful that they'd changed their ways and beliefs. They couldn't help but to feel bad for Jeremy, but it was the life he chose. A light appeared above Jeremy, an unreachable light. "God? Oh please, God! Save my soul! I beg of you, pardon me!" The light held its position as Jeremy continued to sink. His face quickly turned to horror as the light started to fade away. "No! God please shine your heavenly light on me! No, God, no, no!" He started to weep and brought his hands to his eyes as his face sank underneath the black hole.

Gibby and Nevel winced as the black hole closed up, shutting away Jeremy's soul forever. The spirits around them held their hands and smiled at them. They pointed above and the two men looked up to see the heavenly light above their heads. Suddenly an explosion rang out, it was the bombs that Ms. Briggs planted about the mansion. Now that Sam and Valerie were finally out of the house and on the plane going away, it was safe to destroy the home, to destroy their prison once and for all. The two men closed their eyes as they were lifted, with the other spirits, into the heavenly light. Hopefully this meant Hector would lie low for a while. Everyone who was under him was now gone. The heavenly light faded away once everyone was in. It was then that the mansion crumbled down to the ground. For them, this was a metaphorical sign that their prison was gone and the pain and suffering they'd endured was finally over.

* * *

Now you see in the original PB, I didn't have Guppy (Obviously, since he was nonexistent at that time). In this story, you will be seeing him. Much, much later. This story should have a total of 48 chapters. Gibby's death, a somber one. Freddie and Carly wouldn't have killed him if he didn't act the way he did, he knew this about them. Wont see Guppy until "Rewriting History" and you will love it.


	38. Whole Again

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 38 (Whole Again)

Vanessa watched little Rachel playing with Derek, Hank, and Lilly. She could only think of how innocent these little children were. So innocent, so undeserving of having their mothers taken from them. Hank and Lilly were the fortunate two, they were allowed the choice of having a normal childhood. Should it even be a choice, though? Rachel and Derek had done well to grow, despite the struggles they had. Perhaps it was Adam's spirit really watching over them.

"So I'll be the King and you can be the Queen, Rachel!" Vanessa placed her elbow on her armrest and rested her cheek to her chin, smiling cheerfully as Derek took a strong stance and pointed a stick at Rachel. Rachel laughed and Derek pointed to the fort. "This is the castle where Hank imprisons you!" Hank groaned and Lilly grinned at him.

"Why do I always have to be the villain?"

"Because you _are_." Hank sighed and Lilly giggled. Rachel jumped giddily and grabbed Lilly's hand.

"Lilly's my best friend, so she has to be there with me!" Derek tapped his chin and tilted his head in thought. What could Lilly be? Perhaps a servant to Hank who was friendly with Rachel. He nodded and placed his closed hand in his palm, a light bulb going off in his head.

"Okay, Lilly's the servant! She treats Lilly like royalty. Then the King comes by and saves her!" Hank sighed and shrugged, as long as he was playing the game and they had fun, he was happy. The kids laughed and ran off into places, Rachel and Lilly climbing the fort while Hank circled the fort as if he were a shark circling a boat. Vanessa watched this exchange and turned her eyes to the side. Such was the age of innocence, when children's games were just that, children's games, not real life. Where rescuing the princess was only a thing of the past that you did with your best friends. It was never serious, god forbid it ever become a reality. Perhaps Derek and Rachel knew more about this 'game' than Hank and Lilly, or perhaps they didn't realize the realism that came with their casting. To them, it was a silly kid's game, but to Vanessa, it was so much more. To her, they only took on the roles of her baby sister, of Sam, of Hector, and possibly either Jonah or Freddie. She tapped her foot on the porch floor and looked to the screen door. Her family was inside, each of them sitting there, waiting for something, anything. Maybe Jonah would call, but if he didn't call soon, they were to expect the worst. She was probably one of the only ones handling this without breaking down and crying. She couldn't break down, as the oldest sister, she had a job to uphold her image as the strong older sister.

Vanessa looked up as Viola walked out onto the porch. She finally finished with all the operations needed to walk again, but kept her wheelchair as a firm reminder of all that she'd been through. Vincent stepped out with her and placed his hand on the small of her back, he was so happy for his wife. He was retired now and making a good pension. His greatest dream now was seeing his family whole again. "Everyone's here, aren't they?" Vincent nodded at his daughter and Viola wiped her eyes. By everyone, she meant the girls and even Jonah's family.

"Michael got his father and grandfather in law here just a little bit ago," Vincent stated. Granddad Bryant was 110 years old now, Ryan was 89, and perhaps the only thing keeping these two men from passing on was seeing the woman their grandson was going to marry, this sweet and doting young girl that he called Valerie. Olivia was 22 now and joining the military. Above all else, she wanted to see Valerie safe before she went off to boot camp. She was going to become a pilot and couldn't wait to be through with aviation school. "Your sisters are all inside, if you would like to come in. The children will be safe out here."

"No, I want to watch them." Everybody was holding their breaths. Like Freddie had done with his staff at his mansion, Jonah had given them a specific time to await his contact. If he didn't contact by that certain time, assume the worst had happened. Well, that time was in a few more hours and everyone wanted to be with someone for if Jonah _didn't_ contact them. "I thought you were playing poker with Jonah's dad and grandpas, dad?" Vincent chuckled and crossed his arms, closing his eyes as he began feeling the effects of his pride.

"Please, I don't want to be stuffed in a room filled with old men. I'm only 64! I'm not old."

"You're ten years _older_ than Jonah's dad." He paled and stared at her with narrow eyes. He pouted and huffed.

"Thanks for pointing that out, sweetie." Viola laughed and placed her hand to her lips, covering her wide smile. "I'm not sure what hurts more, my age, or the fact that someone over one hundred years old can kick my ass at a poker game." Vanessa smirked as Vincent shook his head slowly.

"Well look at it this way, he's got about forty-six more years of experience than you do!"

"Yeah. Forty-six too many…"

"Well what can you do?" Vanessa looked at the children playing their game and felt a sense of depression growing inside of her. She wanted them to play something else, so badly she did. She had to remind herself that they were just children. The screen door opened once more and George strolled out on the porch. Vincent looked back at him as the elderly man tapped his foot impatiently on the ground.

"There's where you ran off to, coward." Vincent chuckled nervously as Vanessa and Viola watched with amusement. "What? You couldn't take the fact that I had a better hand?"

"I _swear_ you're cheating somehow, old man!"

"I'm just an old man in a wheelchair, how the hell can I cheat?"

"You're in cahoots with your son in law!"

"Ryan's got nothing to do with my skills." Ryan and Michael stepped onto the porch, eager to see what was going on. Vincent had left the card game a bit early. Everyone there knew it was just nervous jitters and no matter how hard they tried, they were unable to focus entirely on the game. They all relaxed themselves and watched the children, perhaps this was the most calming thing they could do. "Look at those youngsters, not even aware of why everyone waits…" Ryan nodded and leaned his shoulder up against a pillar holding up the roof of the patio.

"I'm lucky enough to be alive to see my great granddaughter. Now…I just want to see my grandson happy, I want to see him have a family." The others nodded as Michael rubbed the back of his neck and rolled his head around. He and his father still had a pretty good relationship and in all honesty, he hoped that he and Jonah would be this close when they were old. Perhaps future happiness all depended on what would take place today.

In the kitchen, the other sisters huddled together while Vixen showed off some of her moves. "See my dance instructor wants us to perform a very complex dance, but I can't seem to get it right." Vixen sighed as she attempted a complex move and fell to her feet. She groaned and Victoria helped her to her feet. Veronica sipped her drink and shook her head.

"You probably have a lot on your mind Vixen, I mean we all do." Veronica set her drink on the table and began adjusting Vixen's shirt. "I mean you know what my boss said to me this week? _You look too stressed, I can't use you in any shots, take the week off!_ So I'm out of work this week. At least the guy thinks I'm good enough to keep the job."

"Yeah, you _are_, Veronica. I mean, we've all seen your modeling, you're spectacular!" Veronica blushed as her sisters nodded. She didn't feel so good, though. Every day was still hell for them. The past ten years were the worst years of their life, knowing that they had a sister still alive out there. They could never mourn for her, because they knew she wasn't dead, but they could never go find her or see her because they knew she might be killed, or worse.

"I wish we could just be a happy family again. I mean hell, when mom was able to walk again…"

"We were happy then, weren't we?" Victoria circled the two girls and moved her eyes to the porch while responding to Vixen's question.

"Sure, we were happy for mom, but it wasn't euphoria, if that's what you're asking." They'd all been excited, but even Viola felt a weighty haze upon her, they all did. There had been so much stress going on that the family had nearly been split apart from it all. There had been fights, there had been many arguments and harsh emotions strewn about, but they still managed to rise above it all. "Girls…" Vixen and Veronica looked to Victoria as she begun to sob. Of all of them, she had been the one to take it hardest of the siblings. "I miss Valerie…" The girls hugged their sister close and let her cry on their shoulders. They closed their eyes and felt the pain in their chests as they started to cry as well. During all this, none of them could remember seeing Vanessa cry, but they knew inside she'd gone practically nuts when Valerie was taken from them. They wanted to see her cry, though. They wanted to be able to hold her, but she always _had_ to be the strong one. They wanted to tell her she didn't have to be so strong, but she'd probably think they were insane for thinking such a thing.

"Does anyone know where Olivia is?" Vixen wiped her eyes and looked around. Olivia had been with them, but she wasn't in the room anymore. She was the only one that nobody could see, and everyone wanted to remain within eyeshot. "I thought she wanted to stick around with us and wait for…"

A squeal erupted from another room and the girls looked up in time to see Olivia running into the room. Her mouth was wide in a grin and her heart was pacing. The girls quickly followed her and stopped at the screen door as Olivia ran out onto the porch, waving her cell phone in the air. All eyes fell onto her as the kids continued their game. "I just got a call from Jonah! I spoke with her, she's with him, Valerie!" Everyone continued to stare at her, the shock washing over them as euphoria began pouring through their veins. "They're on their way from Freddie's place as we speak, or well, they've been on the road!"

"How close is he?" Michael asked with a smile. "How close is my son? Is my daughter…" Vanessa rose from her seat and blinked, her sisters all watched her closely.

"Dad, Jonah and Valerie will be here in exactly an hour." Michael cheered as everybody began rushing into the house. They had to prepare, though there wasn't much to prepare, they weren't throwing some big 'welcome home' party for anyone, they just wanted to look their best. Vanessa remained on the porch, choking up a sob. Veronica, Victoria, and Vixen all eyed each other as Vanessa finally broke. Her little sister was coming home, for good! This was the best day of her life. The girls surrounded Vanessa while Veronica tilted her head.

"Go on 'Nessa, cry. Let it out, you've held your tears back for ten years, let them pour." Vanessa strained and suddenly they came rushing from her eyes. The girls hugged her as she sobbed silently, so overcome with joy, sorrow, grief, pleasure, and a whole mix of other emotions. Veronica rubbed her oldest sister's back and smiled. "This time, let us take care of you."

An hour later, Jonah pulled up in front of the house. He looked to Valerie and held her hand, smiling and gazing lovingly into her eyes. "You know, they're not sure whether to stay in Index or move back to Seattle. Ten years and this town has grown on them. Can you believe that?" Valerie laughed and looked at the house. She wasn't surprised, she'd love a small town, but she would miss Seattle too much. "At least your mom and dad are wanting to stay here. Most of your sisters have moved back to Seattle, save Vixen, who still lives with her parents."

"Yeah, so Mom and Dad want to stay here?"

"Yep. My dad's moving back to Seattle to be a little closer to where I am. Rachel still manages to get me to drive all the way out here so she can see her grandparents." Valerie smiled as a tear dripped down her cheek. She was so happy to know she could be with her family. She'd missed so much, too much.

"Mom…can walk now, right?"

"Uh huh."

"I'm happy for her." At least she had reasons to be happy. Honestly, she was afraid she'd never see them again. "Can we go in? It's been so long, I don't want to go another second. I don't think I _can_ go another second without seeing them." Jonah smiled and exited the car, walked around and opened the passenger door for Valerie. As she stepped out of the car, her family seemed to pile out of the front door, an overwhelming, but pleasant sight to see. She smiled at them as Viola _ran_ to her daughter. "Mom…"

"Valerie!" Viola hugged her daughter tightly and tears dripped from her cheeks. Her sisters and Vincent hurried over, each wanting a piece of this greeting. Michael, Olivia, Ryan and George moved over to Jonah. Michael pat his son on the shoulder and smiled proudly.

"You brought her home finally, eh Son? Have I ever told you how proud I am of the man you've grown to be." Jonah smiled and nodded his head. Viola released her daughter and stepped back, spinning a bit.

"Look Valerie dear, I can _walk_ again. And those doctors said I wouldn't be able to walk ever again!" Valerie grinned and applauded her mother. Victoria and Veronica felt their hearts lift up. There was that euphoria they'd missed so much. "I can walk, Valerie, I can walk! I can run, I can dance, but I _can't_ do a cartwheel. I'll break my back." She laughed and hugged Valerie again. This wasn't supposed to be a somber moment, they wanted to forget that she'd been gone for ten whole years. Hell, the last time they physically saw her, Rachel was three. Vincent smiled at his wife and folded his arms over. If his wife and daughters were happy, then he was. He turned to Jonah and his eyes shone with pride.

"So Jonah, you've brought my last daughter home to me. Ten years after saving my family, but hey…better late than never." Hell, the fact that Valerie had been pregnant at sixteen wasn't an issue to him, not at all. He knew it then and he knew it now. Jonah was the type of man that could be trusted, this much was clear as day. "When's the wedding?" Valerie lifted her eyes quickly and blushed as Jonah chuckled nervously.

"Dad!" Michael walked over to Vincent and placed his elbow on his shoulder.

"I agree with old Vincent here, when _is_ the wedding." Jonah and Valerie looked to each other as her sisters surrounded them. Vanessa waved her hands in the air and cleared her throat.

"Excuse me! One step at a time! My baby sister _just_ got home, we can all plan the wedding _later_." They laughed as another car pulled up. Jonah had almost forgotten to mention that Sam, Freddie, Amy, and Angie were coming along with them in their own car. Sam wanted to see her son and Angie couldn't wait to see her brother again. Everybody looked to them as they left their own car. Sam closed her eyes and sighed softly as the cool wind breezed onto her face. Valerie hugged her and smiled.

"Feels good to be free, doesn't it, Sam?"

"Hell yes." Both of them could appreciate the cool, crisp air. Sam smiled and hugged Valerie's hand. In the last ten years, she'd become her best friend. Granted, it wouldn't change how she looked at Carly. But the two were close in a way that she and Carly had never been. Angie tugged on her mother's pant leg and smiled.

"Mommy, where's big brother?" Valerie looked at the little girl and grinned, then looked to her family.

"Yeah, where are our children?"

Rachel, Derek, Hank, and Lilly were all laughing and rolling around on the grass. Yet again, the good guy prevailed. Hank and Lilly went back to the fort as Derek and Rachel's laughter started to die down and they stared up into the sky. "Derek, do you think we'll see our mommies again?"

"Sure, why wouldn't we?"

"Because…mommy's been in captivity for as long as I've been alive! I don't know if the good guys will win this time. It's not a game for our mommies...Where's _their_ kings, their princes?" Derek's face softened as Rachel wiped her eyes. They both knew that game meant more to them than it did to Hank and Lilly. While those two were their best friends, there was just a bond that Derek and Rachel had that those two would never have with them. Derek moved his hand over to Rachel's and grasped it softly.

"It's okay Rachel, I think we will, because Angie said our dads went to find our moms." Rachel smiled and rolled over to snuggle next to her best friend. Derek breathed out and looked into the sky with a more serious expression. _"Adam, I hope you help mommy and Rachel's mom make it home safely."_

"Derek!"

"Rachel!"

Derek and Rachel gasped and their eyes shot open as they sat up and looked at each other. Had they heard it, or had it been a figment of their own imaginations? Hank and Lilly watched from the fort with bright grins. The two stood up and looked at the house, seeing Valerie and Sam standing on the front lawn. They had tears in their eyes and both were kneeling on one knee. Angie waved at her brother and smiled. Derek and Rachel felt their hearts swell and pound, their dreams come true. Their mothers were home! "Mommy!" They ran into their mother's arms as the women held them tightly and cried with them. That day, there was not a single dry eye, and on that day, the families were whole again.

* * *

Emotional chapter, emotional ending of the chapter. I love it. This was where I THOUGHT to end the story, but I pressed on for the next generation. However there are a LOT of differences. One MAJOR difference (It is major, though he appears only in two consecutive chapters) is actually a surprise...but there's a huge difference with the whole cliff thing and whatnot that took place in PB, along with the trial, Hector, etc etc. You'll enjoy it...I just changed to what I felt would have been a more realistic approach


	39. First Day of School

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 39 (First Day of School)

Hector mourned while in Victor's living room. He'd seen it coming, but he didn't want it to end. His own little family. Sure, some days had passed since then, but it was still hell for him. Gibby, Nevel, Jeremy, Valerie, and even Sam, all gone. Fortunately, he had the sons of Gibby, Nevel, and Jeremy. Of course, they seemed to be going by way of their fathers, which was a slight bit disappointing. Victor's son didn't know of them, they did not live in the same place. Although, they did go to the same school, and Victor's son was best friends with a girl named Cara, who reminded Hector a lot of Carly Shay.

Victor rubbed Hector's back as the well-built mountain of a man trembled and shook. Gregory, Jeremy's son, Landon, Nevel's son, and Timmy, Gibby's son, all surrounded Hector and offered their support. He was like a father to them in so many ways. They didn't know too much about their fathers, just the first few years. Timmy loved his dad with all his heart, but when his mother died, he knew he would probably never see his father again. Gregory was only six, and he was already on the road to being just as messed up as his father was. Everyone could only presume it was a hereditary thing, but he definitely ordered Landon around, which was not much of a surprise. "They're gone, they're all gone. Benson and Brown just swooped right in and took them all. I should have been there, damn it! I should have been there!" Victor sighed and pat Hector's back, he felt sorry for the guy, but there really wasn't much that could have been done. As much as both of them wished there was, there was nothing.

"It's a shame, Hector. It really is, but what can you do?" Hector closed his hands and growled. If his children were taken from him, if his family was taken from him, then he would destroy Freddie Benson's family. Sam would likely be under protection right now, but Angie probably wouldn't. He would kill that little girl, and then he would kill Sam. He didn't care about Jonah and Valerie, those two could live their perfectly happy lives. He wasn't mad at them, though. Rather, he was happy. Valerie was like a daughter to him, and more than anything, he'd want to see her happy. Sam was different, perhaps it was the guilt over what he'd done to her eating him away, but he knew the paternal bonds between them was shattered.

"I don't know, Vic. All I can think of right now is…just a blur of frenzied thoughts." Victor nodded as the young boys all hugged Hector, trying to give him as much comfort as three little six year olds could give. "You kids…you know, you remind me a lot of your fathers. You do." He wiped his eyes as the boys all grinned happily. Hector took a deep breath and sighed. "So, are you three ready for your first day of school?" Anything to get him over the loss of his family. In an instant, he lost everything, he lost his entire world. Sure, they were built over evil intentions and a desire to not end up alone, but the heart was there. The heart would always be there.

"Yeah pops, let's get this school thing started," Gregory stated with a wide grin. He looked so much like Jeremy that Hector really wasn't sure what to think. Victor smiled as Hector started leading the boys out to the car. His own son was already at school, having left with that Cara girl. He peered over as his wife entered the room. He frowned and glanced away. "Hello Clarice."

"Victor, you lazy bum, did you even think to get up off your feet and say bye to Johnny before he left?" He closed his eyes and exhaled as she continued her yelling. For some ungodly reason, they were still together. After all this time, and all the fighting, one would think they'd have spilt up already. "What if something were to happen?"

"I highly doubt anything is going to happen. So I miss one day of wishing my son well in school. What's one day out of the other three hundred and sixty four days of the year?"

"It's his self-esteem that matters, Victor! Or do you want him to grow up like that freeloading friend of yours?"

"Hector is actually very successful, my dear." Victor rolled his eyes as his wife scoffed and cackled.

"Please! You _made_ him what he is!" Yes, he'd made a lot of people very rich. He did orchestrate a specific wing of crime, staying hidden behind his publishing company. He made quite a fair share of wealth.

"What do you want me to do? You want me to go all the way to Johnny's school and tell him that I hope he has a good day? Cause if that's what you want, I'll do it!" He turned his narrow gaze to her and breathed out a warning breath.

"I just want you to pay more attention to your son, to your family! We are your family, Victor. Not this Hector guy and a couple of his illegitimate children."

"They're not illegitimate…" She really knew how to piss him off. He rose from his seat and started towards the front door, peering out the window. He hoped Hector wouldn't do anything else stupid, but had a feeling something bad was going to happen. As far as he was concerned, the whole thing with Sam was _over_. Whether Hector felt that way or not was really of no concern to him. Ten years to take care of his dealings with his daughter and servants had dealt a huge blow to Victor's pocket. Hector could mourn, but he definitely could not attempt to fall back into his scheme.

At the school, Johnny sat with Cara and Angie, talking happily about their first day of school. Her brother was in his own class with Rachel, Hank, and Lilly. She wished she could have class with him, but realized that his lessons were of a much higher caliber and grade than hers. "So, you two _don't_ care? I mean, the fact that my mom and dad…"

"It's not a problem for us, really," Cara replied with a smile. Angie had just confided in the two about her past, thinking they'd run scared. The fact that they didn't run away said a lot and meant a lot to her. "Besides, I was, uh…adopted…" She didn't want to lie like that, but there were people around and if anyone knew her mother was Carly Shay, there'd be trouble. She sighed and whispered into Angie's ear. "I'll tell you the truth about my parents later, in a more private place." Angie nodded and looked over to Johnny who smiled kindly at her.

"My mom and dad? Well they're always fighting." He tapped his finger on his desk and sighed. He wished they wouldn't fight, he wished they loved each other. "Sometimes I wonder if they really do love each other or not."

"If they didn't, then they wouldn't be together, right?" He chuckled and looked to the door. Gregory, Landon, and Timmy trotted into the room. Angie looked at them and chuckled, she could have some fun with the fact that these men looked almost nerdy. Gregory sneezed and raised an eyebrow as he sat in the desk in the back of the room. Landon sat next to him, but Timmy was more concerned with exploring the room. These men, they reminded her greatly of the men that had her mother captive. So automatically, they fell under her radar.

"Angie?" The two watched as Angie rose up and moved quietly over to Timmy. Timmy looked at her and waved. Cara and Johnny glanced at each other with concern, not really sure what to make of these three boys. They did _not_ seem friendly at all. Hell, they seemed worse than friendly, they seemed to have a somewhat dark aura emanating from them. Gregory and Landon stared at Angie coldly as she introduced herself to Timmy.

"Hello, I'm Angie, what is your name?"

"Timmy."

"Good to meet you. Can you read what's on the board?" Timmy shrugged and looked to the board, squinting at the words. He'd not been taught to read that well. Angie knelt down as he strained himself on the first word.

"Welcome back to school, I believe." He shrugged and looked over, seeing that Angie was already gone and at her seat. Shrugging he turned to Gregory and Landon, both boys were shaking their heads pitifully and pointing down. He ignored them and tried to walk forward, but his laces were caught and he was sent crashing to the ground. Angie began laughing while Cara and Johnny raised their eyebrows, unsure if this was the wisest move to make. After all, they didn't know who this kid was, and the one kid that walked in with him seemed a lot darker than they wanted to think.

Timmy sighed and undid his shoelaces while Mrs. Valdez shook her head. She would have to have a talk with Angie's parents later. Timmy got up and hurried over to a desk with Landon and Gregory. Landon pat him on the back while Gregory narrowed his eyes and stared at Angie, who was now talking to Cara and Johnny. She suddenly felt cold and looked over at Gregory. What was his problem, she wondered?

"You okay Timmy?" Landon asked with a smile. Timmy rubbed the back of his head and shrugged.

"Yeah, I'm fine. The girl's just doing a prank, that's all. Nothing to lose sleep over, right?"

"If you say so." Landon glanced over at Gregory, who was still glaring dangerously at Angie. He winced and leaned against his desk. "Gregory, why do you always seem so mad at the world and everything?" Gregory blinked and looked straight ahead, closing his eyes.

"I'm not."

"Yeah you are. I mean, it's kind of like your dad…maybe it's hereditary."

"Don't talk about Dad." He knew who it was that killed his father, and they killed him in order to help Angie. Perhaps Timmy and Landon didn't recognize her right off the bat, but when they did, they might hate her too. Wasn't she the reason for everything? No, but she was definitely part of it all. "You'll understand one day."

"Okay Greg, whatever you say." The morning announcements rang over the PA system, signaling the start of class. Timmy looked at Johnny and sighed, knowing well who he was. Sad as it was, perhaps Johnny was the only one that didn't take after his father in any way. It really was something to be proud of. Timmy tore his gaze from the trio and looked to their teacher. With class underway, he saw a pretty bright future.

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Hope you enjoyed the chapter.


	40. Wedding Day Crisis

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 40 (Wedding Day Crisis)

A month later, Hector was in high spirits. Sam was getting married, Valerie was getting married, and he wanted to at least be able to see the weddings. He wasn't one to choose favorites, but he wanted to see Valerie's wedding more, specifically because he felt bad just being at Sam's. He couldn't help but to wonder who was going to hand her away, maybe Spencer would. It was a risk to go to Sam's wedding, though, because Carly was there and so was her bodyguard. He didn't care. He wasn't going to cause any trouble for anybody during this time.

He snuck around the church yard and hid behind a shrub, wincing at all the guards. Ms. Briggs was really not letting anything go. Valerie's wedding would be the next day, and Freddie was going to be Jonah's best man, Sam would be the matron of honor. Rachel got to be the flower girl and Derek got to be the ring bearer. He was also chosen as the ring bearer for Sam's wedding.

Hector peered through the fence and smiled as Sam walked down the aisle, Spencer was handing her off. Standing next to Freddie as his best man was Jake. Even though he hated Freddie, he couldn't help but to feel _something_ for his daughter's wedding day. His heart swelled up as the minister spoke. The man spoke for anybody to speak up if they didn't agree, nobody did. For his daughter's happiness, if anybody dared to stand against this union, he _would_ be busting a few heads. Why had he held her for ten years? Just because of that Jeremy kid? Once he'd done what he did to her, he couldn't simply let her go.

His stomach clenched and he slammed his fist into the fence, his eyes tightly shut and stress creases forming on his lids. Jeremy fucked with his mind back then, and continued to do so. He made him forget that Sam was his own fucking daughter, he made him remember the girl that he'd molested and associate her with Sam, he _made_ him lose his mind and then hold Sam for all those years. Then whenever he got drunk, terrible things happened. Why had he not just simply killed Jeremy? Now he wanted to destroy everyone around him, his mind was already out of it. He didn't know what happened between Gibby and Jeremy while he was gone, but when the house had exploded, the bodies remained the way they were. Jeremy had beatings on him that took place long before his fall and death. He'd have to as Valerie.

"Hey, you there!" Hector's eyes widened as he felt himself torn from his hiding spot. He grunted and rolled along the ground, then looked up to see Ms. Briggs and a couple police officers. Groaning, he stood up and met her fierce eyes. She looked ready to kill, and already his mind was going onto the defensive. "What do you think you're doing?" It was the male guard speaking to him, all guns aimed on him.

"I'm watching my daughter become a wife." Briggs frowned and narrowed her eyes. There was no way in hell they were letting him in. "So, can I do so?" The guard shook his head and narrowed his glare.

"No."

"Come on, I'm not causing any trouble."

"Your mere presence is trouble enough. You have a lot of guts to show up here." Hector rolled his eyes and waved his hand dismissively. He wasn't going to do anything, so they could just shut up as far as he was concerned. He started walking back to the fence and the guard tore him back, pulling him to the ground. "I am telling you, you can't go in!" Hector growled and pushed himself up, everything in his nerves and defenses was skyrocketing. Things were about to become violent and out of his control. Whenever he got angry, he couldn't control himself, perhaps this was his greatest vice.

"Do you even know who you're talking to?" Briggs laughed and cocked her gun, smirking dangerously.

"Yeah, a dead man." He frowned as the woman aimed her gun towards him, resisting every urge to kill him on the spot. Spencer still wanted to have his day in court with this man. He wanted Hector to _feel_ the pain of his victims. That was how trials really worked, in the end the guilty had to speak to the victims and their families, and they had a chance to speak to the guilty. "As sacred of a day as this is, I'm still not above shooting the hell out of you."

"I'm not _doing _anything!" Briggs raised her hand up and Hector took a slight step back, this was bad. This was very, very bad.

"Okay men, ready…" His eyes widened as fear surged through him. The clicking of guns rang in his ear, burning his eardrums. "Aim…"

"Oh shit." He took another step back and started to turn around, he needed to find shelter and fast. If not, he was as good as dead.

"Fire!" He wasn't one to run from a fight, but in this case, with him as unarmed as he was, it was entirely necessary. His body lurched forward as the bullets stung him like wasps, tearing into his arms, legs, and body. He fell to his knees as Briggs shouted out once more. "Cease fire!" The shooting ended and Hector fell back against the grass, moaning softly as the old woman neared him. He stared up at her, malice burning in his eyes. "And _you _don't know who you're dealing with."

"You bitch…how could you…" Briggs smirked and crossed her arms. Freddie suspected Hector might pull a stunt like this and crash the wedding. When Cara saw him running around, she didn't recognize him and alerted a guest, who alerted her.

"Well, a little girl saw you and told us."

"You pathetic piece of shit, I wasn't doing anything…" Ignoring him, she turned her back to him and closed her eyes, barking out her last orders. They finally had him, they _finally_ had the elusive Hector Puckett.

"Cuff him." He was soon jerked to his feet and grunted as someone slapped the handcuffs on him. Evidently police brutality wasn't an issue for them. He could sue them for it, but probably with the type of man he was, he wouldn't win much in the trial. He knew people, but they knew people as well, and they also had one of the most powerful lawyers in all of Washington at their disposal. They could get away with whatever they wanted. Hopefully Victor would have a good lawyer, he was going to need it. That was, if they could hold him.

He was thrown roughly into the back of a police car. He looked up pitifully at Ms. Briggs, who was grinning triumphantly. In the front seat was a very burly, muscular police officer. He rolled his eyes and sighed. "Stereotypical, much?" The fact that they didn't even use a regular police officer, but had to put him in a car with a strong one, said quite a bit about how they were. "You know, what happened to my rights?"

"Oh yeah…" She smirked and quickly read him his Miranda rights. He rolled his eyes in disgust and stared straight ahead, planning his escape. He really didn't want to miss Valerie's wedding, but it looked like that would be the case.

"If you think you can hold me…" Briggs hit him in the head with her gun and he flinched with pain.

"Nobody cares what your fat-ass has to say, so just shut up." She ordered the officer to take him to the prison hospital, even though she personally wouldn't have cared if he bled out to death. She just wanted to see him put on death row.

"You know what? You're a fucking bitch!" Briggs smirked at him and folded her arms over.

"I have a reputation of being cruel, so I'll take that as a compliment, thank you." She grabbed the back of his head, pulling his hairs and causing him to scream out in pain as she moved her face close to his. "You held one of my students in a dungeon for ten years, raped her three times during all this time…" Hector moved his eyes to her while holding his mouth open. His body twitched as he tried to pull himself from her hold. "You twisted the minds of three innocents who lost their lives fighting for _your_ beliefs, and lest we not forget about sweet Valerie, who you held there too."

"You've got me wrong, you know…"

"Oh do I?" She chuckled once, then glared angrily at him as she smacked his head against the gate in front of him. "I don't think I do!" He shouted as blood dripped from his nose and mouth. He deserved this, he knew it. "Now shut up before I shoot the mouth off your disgusting mug. I'm missing the reception."

"I just want to see my daughter's wedding…"

"We'll send pictures." Briggs turned and walked away as the guard drove off. Hector sighed and leaned his head against the seat. The officer looked into the rearview mirror and smirked.

"So, Hector Puckett."

"What do you want?"

"Victor Oswin sends his regards." Hector raised his eyebrow curiously as the officer turned the street. He took a left turn, yet the jail was to the right. What the hell?

"Uh, excuse me?"

"I requested they let me drive you. See, there are _some_ people on the force who work for Victor. I'm just one of them." Hector's eyebrows rose sharply as the man floored it, not wanting to raise suspicions. "Keep your head down and we'll be fine. I'll take you somewhere that will treat those wounds. Vic won't be happy to hear you got your ass in trouble again."

"I wasn't _doing_ anything, though."

"Well what were you doing at Sam's wedding?"

"I just wanted to see my daughter's wedding! Damn it! I was hoping to see Valerie's wedding too…" He looked down and sighed.

"Valerie?"

"You don't understand, over the ten years. Those people became like family to me. Valerie was like my daughter, Gibby and Nevel like my sons. As far as Jeremy goes…I don't know why I kept him around."

"Jeremy controlled you."

"My mind is so fucked up now…" The man looked to Hector with a frown and shook his head in sorrow. "I shouldn't want to, but I honestly want to kill that Freddie Benson and everyone else. I want to kill Angie, that little girl…"

"Why?"

"Because she and Derek were _my_ problem, _my_ mistake!" Erasing his mistakes may be the key to redemption, who knew. At least that was the way he learned. He was drunk and Jeremy put Sam in front of him on those times, saying it was that girl. He was too drunk to even know what was going on. "I should erase my mistakes, shouldn't I?"

"Er…yes, yes that would be best." Hector lifted his eyes up as his stomach turned over. Maybe the man was right, maybe he _should_ erase his screw-ups. If Angie and Derek were dead, it was a screw-up erased. He didn't like the thought of it, but in truth, he couldn't think of anything else. "If you still want to see Valerie's wedding tomorrow, I'm sure Vic can arrange something. You just need to learn to _talk_ to the boss man."

"I know, but I feel like if I do just simply talk to him, things will go horribly wrong."

"Tell me, you ever seen _The Godfather_?"

"That old movie? Who hasn't?"

"Well it's a lot like that. Victor is the Don and we're just the foot soldiers. You may be his Capo régime, for all I know." Hector laughed for a moment, then winced as pain shot through him. He should have known better than to laugh while he was all shot up. "I'm sure he'll tell you to just not make a scene at Valerie's wedding and nothing will go wrong."

"You sure he wouldn't just whack me for all this?" The man laughed and shook his head. He wasn't sure _how_ Victor would react to everything, but chances were likely that he wouldn't react that badly.

"As long as you don't go getting yourself into any trouble and make things hard on him, it should all be fine. Remember, a good structured 'family' has plenty of connections."

"Didn't think the mafia was still around." The man laughed again and turned into a shady looking neighborhood with an even shadier looking hospital. Hector raised an eyebrow and began to feel a bit nervous about the place. "My guess, this isn't a legit hospital, but you guys have a legit doctor working for you…"

"Yep. Now get out and let's get you all fixed up." Hector shrugged and did as said. He wasn't complaining as long as he could get his wounds fixed up. He moved into the hospital while the man waited outside and spoke with Victor on the phone, letting him know everything that went down. Once Hector was all done and let out, the man pat his shoulder and sighed. "Victor says next time, if they catch you, he's going to let you sit in prison a few years. He can't keep looking after you."

"Yeah, I understand…" He brushed the man's hand away and started walking down the street. "Thanks for your help, I'll take it from here."

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I feel a little for both Hector and Ms. Briggs, she didn't know what was going on, naturally hates the guy and was protecting Sam on her wedding day, but she was a bit extreme.


	41. A Peaceful Wedding

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 41 (A Peaceful Wedding)

Valerie was nervous as hell, her emotions on this day were skyrocketing. Her sisters, her mother, and even Sam were all in the bride's room with her and she just wanted _one_ of them there. With all of them running around, it was almost too much. Sam grinned at Valerie from the wall and tapped her foot on the ground. "Valerie, having just got married, I can tell you that there's nothing to be afraid of. I'm sure you're feeling the same stuff I went through…"

"Yeah, but at least you didn't have this many people in-OW!" She yelped as a pin hit her body. Vixen frowned and looked at her apologetically. She sighed and brought her arms down, but Vanessa quickly put her hands under her arms and lifted them back up horizontally. "Why do I have to hold my arms out like this anyway? I'm tired of holding them up so much!"

"Dearest little sister of mine…" Vanessa clicked her tongue and started fixing the shoulder puffs and smiled into Valerie's eyes. "This is your wedding day, you want to be _perfect_ for your handsome groom, don't you?" Valerie sighed and Sam rolled her eyes and smiled. Of course she wanted things to be perfect, but damn, she just wanted to relax. Her dress was already more perfect than it really was going to get! She looked to Sam, pleading with her eyes for help. Sam chuckled and took a step forward, clapping her hands together.

"Okay girls, you've got her dress all nice and fluffy." Valerie gagged on the choice of words. _Fluffy_? She was _fluffy?_ "Now just give her a moment to rest, okay? This is an important day for her. Let me just have a few moments to talk with her and ease some nervous jitters and you guys go take care of the guests." The women agreed and left the room one by one, albeit reluctantly. Once it was just her and Sam, Valerie sighed and nearly fell back into a chair, but thought better of it when she realized she didn't want to mess anything up with her dress.

"Thanks, Sam, but…_fluffy_?" Sam laughed and started brushing her hand along Valerie's sleeve, making sure there was nothing on the dress that shouldn't be there. "I can see fancy, but why fluffy?"

"Couldn't think of anything better. Now, how do I ease your mind?"

"By not saying I'm in a fluffy dress." The girls laughed for a minute, then quieted down. Sam gazed with slight envy at Valerie's dress. If she hadn't just had her own wedding, she'd be jealous as hell.

"You are so beautiful."

"Oh?" Her eyes brightened and she lifted her dress a little at the waist and looked down at it, smiling and blushing a bit. "You think so?"

"Yeah. When Jonah sees you, he may have to try hard as hell not to faint on the spot." Valerie's blush deepened and she closed her eyes. She'd always fantasized about this day, thinking in might never happen. "You shouldn't be so nervous, you know."

"I know, but it's hard not to be. Not only that, but my family treats Jonah like he's the second coming." She laughed and Sam chuckled to herself. They had every right to, and the women knew that. "I can see why, after all the things he's done for them. Looking after them, protecting them, so many things…I never knew he cared so much for my family." Up until their capture, Jonah was only involved a little with her family. After that, they were almost always one of the top things on his mind. "Did you know that every day, he would either pay them a visit if he had time or call them up for sure and ask how they were? He always kept them in good spirits, especially my mom."

"You're lucky to have him, Valerie." Valerie smiled and turned her eyes to a mirror, gazing at herself in wonder. She really was beautiful. It had been a while since she actually felt that way about herself. She turned to Sam and held her cheerful smile.

"You're lucky to have Freddie!" Sam smiled as she and Valerie exchanged hugs. It was still hard on them to think about their years held hostage, but hearing of the sacrifices both Gibby and Nevel made eased their minds somewhat.

"You know, if I didn't have you there with me all those years, I think I might have gone insane."

"I know I would have." For Valerie, it was Gibby that really kept her sane. Gibby, and the hope that one day, Jonah was going to come for her. Her prince, her knight, her king. "I think wherever Gibby is right now, I hope he's happy." She wiped a tear from her eyes as Sam slowly nodded her head. Gibby was perhaps the only one there that held her captive that she actually felt any bit of respect for whatsoever.

"He wasn't as bad as the others."

"Yeah…" They both wanted to move away from this discussion, it was too painful to think about on such a great day. "Let's talk about something else, okay? I don't want to think about all that today."

"Right. How about Jonah's great grandfather?" Sam chuckled as she recalled one of the first things George said when Valerie and Sam arrived at the home. She deepened her voice and tried to imitate him. "Finally, I can let myself die and die happy." Valerie laughed and wiped her eye once more. She was going to love being a part of Jonah's quirky, witty family. "Rachel, I bet you're proud of her aren't you?"

"She's grown to be quite the little girl. I couldn't be prouder." Rachel was truly the strength that really kept her going, the one that shone a light through all the darkness. She was so innocent, so sweet, so blissfully unaware of all the dangers that were happening. Valerie peered out the door and felt her heart jump as she saw the music begin to play. Sam closed her eyes and smiled happily. "Hey Sam, there's some strange guests in the party I don't recognize. They're all kind of huddled together in their seats, as though they're hiding someone. Think I should be concerned?"

"No, I don't think there's anything to worry about." Sam stepped to the door and motioned Valerie to step back. It was almost their time. The bridesmaids and groomsmen were up, the best man was walking to the altar with the groom, and now it was their turn to go. Rachel ran into the room and grinned.

"Mommy! Are you ready?" Derek was right behind her, smiling as he placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Rachel, I know you're excited, but calm down." Rachel giggled as Derek laughed happily. He too was thrilled, but didn't want to show it.

"I want to throw flowers on the ground!"

"Gracefully…"

"You mean I have to do it gracefully?" The group laughed as the music changed. Everyone stood up and both the flower girl and ring bearer quickly scrambled to their places. Rachel was in front of Valerie while Sam held the tail of Valerie's dress. Derek straightened himself and held the ring pillow carefully in his hands. She eyed Jonah and her heart rose. He looked so incredibly handsome with his hair combed back and his tuxedo so brilliantly shaping his shoulders and muscles. She was breathless, nearly fainting when his eyes met hers. This was the man she would spend the rest of her life with. Nothing, nothing could ruin this moment for her.

Jonah watched Valerie closely, his lips curling up into a smile. She was more than just drop dead gorgeous, she was stunningly beautiful. He wasn't sweating, but he was nervous as hell. He felt seemingly inferior in every way. He wasn't letting her go this time. Nothing in this world would tear them apart.

He watched as Vincent took her arm with his arm and walked to the minister. Sam took her place next to the altar and wiped her eyes. At least, she wasn't as emotional as Viola was. She felt for Vincent, who was about to become the wettest man in the entire wedding. Rachel and Derek took their places and smiled at each other while Valerie locked her eyes with Jonah. They didn't even hear the minister talking, or hear Vincent announce his handing her over and shake Jonah's hand. They took each other's hands and gazed lovingly into their eyes. A love this strong should never be questioned, that was one of the first things the minister said.

Hector sat with Victor's men surrounding him. So far, there were no problems. He was eternally grateful for this. He watched with tears in his eyes as his second daughter gazed so lovingly into Jonah's eyes. To him, she was his redemption, his second chance. He screwed up big time with Sam, she would never in a million years forgive him, and he understood that. That was why he made damn sure to treat Valerie right, to be a father to her.

Sure, being a father meant taking care of your children and making sure they were happy. He should have sent her back to her own family, Jeremy was the one making damn sure that never happened. It would have been best if he'd done so. _"I'm sorry Valerie. I don't know what was wrong with Jeremy, honestly I don't."_ He wiped his eyes and clenched them shut. Did Valerie hate him like Sam did? Did she? Maybe, because he was never able to keep Jeremy at bay, and all the abuse she had to suffer from him must have made her hate him.

He wasn't sure if he should talk to her or not, if it would create any problems at all. He was, at least, very happy that she was finally finding her happiness with Jonah. Breathing deeply as the wedding came to a close, he stood with the rest of the guests and clapped proudly as the newlywed couple shared an intimate, passionate kiss. His thoughts, along with every other guests, when this happened was hoping that Viola's bawling would end before she drowned her husband.

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Well at least he got to see Valerie's wedding ^_^. Next chapter will be interesting.


	42. Turning Himself In

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

* * *

Chapter 42 (Turning Himself In)

A few days later, Hector started down the street, he knew what he was going to do. He didn't want to, but lately it didn't seem that there was any other way to get rid of his past. His mistakes. He saw Cara, Johnny, and Angie playing together in the park. His heart sank as he imagined that girl without any life in her body, any life in her eyes. He wasn't looking for forgiveness. In truth, he didn't want forgiveness, he didn't deserve it. He leaned against a tree, watching them.

"You know, sometimes I think my dad's a crime boss," Johnny said with a laugh. The girls looked at him with raised eyebrows and he shrugged his shoulders. "We went to see this movie about a mafia style gangster and the leader reminded me a bit of how Dad talks and sounds with people." He didn't think too much into it because he honestly didn't think all that was real. Why would his dad even be involved in crime, anyway? Angie chuckled as she tagged Johnny.

"You're weird, but whatever. You're it!"

"No! I was it last time, it's your turn!" Angie rolled her eyes and smirked, she could go with that. She loved to be the seeker. She moved to a rock and closed her eyes, resting her hands and face on the rock and counting to ten. Johnny and Cara were heard laughing and running off into the distance. Angie frowned and fought the feelings of abandonment inside her. She'd grown past all that, but it still hurt. Sometimes she was envious of both her older brother and Rachel, they had been the lucky ones. Then she had to think, had any of them truly been _luck_y_? _They'd all gone through so much, so much that their closest friends would never quite understand the terror and the fear. The nightmares they had, those were real. Everything was just too real for them. They were just kids, they didn't deserve all that happened to them. It made them older, seemingly. Old enough to feel and to have seen things that would forever haunt them. The age of innocence was too easily cut short for everyone involved. She shook her head and moved back from the rock, swallowing hard and remembering the game they were playing.

"Ready or not, here I come!" She scanned the park area and shook off a feeling of dread. She knew they were somewhere. Hell, she heard giggling nearby. "Cara, you know laughing will only help me find you!" Cara stopped giggling abruptly and Angie began walking towards where she heard the giggling.

Hector closed his eyes and began to grow irritable. He just wanted to get this whole ordeal over with. He didn't want to be such a grouch, really he didn't, but that was how he felt. Maybe he would kill her, maybe he'd just hold her until they found him. The police were searching for him, after all. He ran out and picked Angie up from behind. She yelled out and he continued walking, ignoring her screams. "No! Not you! Put me down, please!"

"Just shut up…"

"Help! Someone help!" She screeched and he cupped his hand over her mouth, feeling very annoyed with her shrill screams. Just as he was about to leave the park, Cara and Johnny stepped in front of him, glaring angrily.

"Put her down!" Johnny shouted and took a daring step forward. He didn't know this big man and was afraid of him, but he wasn't going to show it. Hector rolled his eyes and sighed.

"If you think I'm afraid of a couple six year olds, then you're in for a shock. Now get out of my way." He brushed past the children and made his way to an old abandoned warehouse where he tied Angie up. Sighing, he moved to a crate and sat on it, holding his hands in front of his face as she watched him carefully.

"What are you doing?"

"Waiting." He closed his eyes and sighed as he dreamed up a huge fight with Freddie and Freddie's father, a fight of the fathers. He could see himself nearly winning, but losing in the end. He could make it happen if he wanted to, he could cause an enormous fight, he could make everyone hate him even more and cause more pain for everybody involved. "Is your brother nowhere to be found?"

"N-No…" Hector shrugged and stared at Angie. She was dressed very well in a soft t-shirt with a kitten on it and blue felt pants. She had a small, pink jacket draped over her with a hood that rested on her back. He couldn't kill her, he didn't even know why the thought was even suggested.

"Hey!" Angie gasped and Hector looked to the doorway, it was Derek. Derek strode into the warehouse, his eyes locked in a death glare on Hector. "You stay away from my little sister! My brother's dead because of you, and I'm not going to lose my sister to you, either!" Hector winced and closed his eyes, recalling what happened to Adam many years ago. Sighing, he slowly stood up and turned his gaze to Derek.

"It wasn't I that took your brother's life. I wouldn't do something like that. Jeremy is the one…" Hector looked to the doorway and saw Rachel peering in, hiding at the side. She was obviously afraid of him, unable to really remember much.

"Jeremy was the bad man," She said with a small whimper. She did remember him and he still frequented her nightmares. The reason she awoke in a sweat on some nights. "Mommy said he tried to do something really bad to her just before they were rescued…she wouldn't say what, but Uncle Gibby was knocked out. Mrs. Benson saved her." Hector's eyebrows rose in thought as he tried to think about what Jeremy could have done to Valerie.

His face darkened and his hands closed up tightly as realization slowly came over him. _"Damn it! I _knew_ I should have been there!" _Jeremy might have touched her and he wasn't there to stop him. It took everything inside him not to freak out in front of the children. He wanted to tear Jeremy's head from his body, destroy him piece by piece. Frustrating as it was, Jeremy was _dead_ now. _"I couldn't do anything."_ He was busy doing something Jeremy had made him do, getting their sons. All this time, he was finally starting to realize. This hadn't been about him, this hadn't been about him at all. He was just a fucking _pawn_, a fucking pawn in Jeremy's whole scheme. He had a chance at a new life ten years ago, he had a chance to fix everything, but Jeremy came along and he fucked everything up. Tears stung his eyes as rage, guilt, and sorrow gripped at him. "Derek. I think you'd better take your sister. Take your sister…and go…The police are coming, aren't they?" Derek frowned and stared at the man curiously. What was this about, he wondered,.

"Okay…and yes. Johnny and Cara alerted mom and dad."

"Why?" Hector buried his fingers into his eyes, turning around and trying to hold his rage down. "Why didn't they just go to the police? Why burden Sam? Just go, get out of here…" Derek nodded and untied Angie, then ran outside. Once they made it outside, he exploded.

In his rage, he punched the wall and grabbed a crate, throwing it across the room. He kicked a metal pole and smashed his fist into another crate. "Why?" He lifted a crate above his head and roared with anger as he brought it crashing down on the floor. "Fuck with my life, control me, why the _fuck?"_ His enormous body shook as he fell to his knees and gripped the dirt on the floor with his fingers. He felt sick and wanted to die. He heard guns click and looked up to see several police officers glaring at him. In front of them stood Freddie and Henry, Sam couldn't bring herself to go in there.

"Well." Freddie cracked his neck, ready for a fight. It was taking everything in him not to destroy this man, but he was going to do the right thing. He would let Spencer be the one to tear this man apart. "You going to come easily, or do we need to do this the hard way? For taking my daughter, I should kill you right here."

"Shut up Benson." Freddie raised his eyebrow as Hector slowly rose, tears staining his cheeks. "Tell me…is Valerie okay?"

"What?"

"What happened to her that day…What that bastard did to her…is she okay?" Freddie and Henry looked at each other with confusion and the police officers lowered their weapons, not entirely certain whether they would need lethal force or not.

"Um, she's fine. He didn't do anything, by the way. Sam stopped him and Gibby pretty much prevented anything further…" Even after Jeremy took her up to the room, he didn't touch her. He was wounded and going to fix himself up, there was no reason to touch her. "So answer the question, are you…" Hector held his hand up. He then turned around, placed his hands on the back of his head and moved to his knees. Everyone stared in surprise, nobody expected him to give in so easily.

On the day of his trial, Victor had one of his best lawyers defending him, but as they suspected, they were up against Spencer. Hector was offered a plea deal, that if he accepted and plead guilty, he would get life with the possibility of parole in fifty years. A narrow escape from the death penalty. He refused the plea bargain, but did not deny his guilt.

It came to a surprise to him that Spencer had found a witness, the janitor who worked at the movie theater saw and heard what he had done to Sam that night and had been too afraid to speak up then. It did not take long at all for the jury to reach a verdict of guilty and for the judge to sentence him to death by lethal injection. A fitting end, in his eyes. He was given the opportunity to speak to the families and victims, and he took that opportunity. He didn't prepare any notes, he wanted everything to come from the heart, nothing written down, so nobody could say he didn't speak from his heart. He stood at the podium and saw the eyes of everybody whom he harmed, or that Jeremy had harmed. Today, they could speak not only to him, but to Jeremy as well. He wanted them to let it all out.

"I stand here before you, before all of you, a man marked for death." His eyes met Sam, who turned away from him. She was hurting too much to be there, but she had to. He frowned and let out a sigh. "I know what I've done was horrible, and I've wronged so many people…there is nothing I can do or say to erase the pain that I have caused, I know this. I won't stand here before you and tell you that I was a victim, I most certainly was not. Sure, Jeremy had used me for his own malicious intents, but the fact that I went along with it…and did nothing to stop it...makes me a criminal just as much. I am truly sorry for the pain that I have caused you and I wish that we could all just go back to living normal lives…but it's going to be a long and hard road for all of us." His body shook as he moved his gaze to Valerie. She didn't look away, but kept watching him. She felt bad for him, it was just how she was.

"To the Williams, I say I am sorry for having taken your daughter, your sister, your friend away from you." Vanessa closed her hand up and breathed a scoff from her lips. "I don't know the pain you must have felt. Just know, that it was a selfish decision on my part. I hurt my own daughter in a way that a father never should. I thought, maybe, I was given a second chance. I realize that I have failed then as well, as a true father would have let her go, and I selfishly kept her with me…" Valerie placed her hand to her chest as a tear fell from her eyes, she never even knew he thought that way about anything. "I am sorry."

"To my wife, I know you above all must and should hate me. You have every right to. I betrayed you, lied to you, tricked you…a common con man, it seems. I am sorry." Amy's face twisted in disgust as she eyed him with hate flowing through her veins. At least hearing these words did make it feel a little better, seeing the remorse in his eyes, telling them he was still human. At least, a lot more human than Jeremy ever was.

Soon, he was finished speaking to everybody and was ready for them to tear into him. He tried to hide the tears in his eyes, but couldn't. It tormented him, but he was not to complain. The first to rise up, on behalf of Valerie's family, was Vanessa. She met his eyes and gripped her podium so hard that her knuckles turned white. "Seeing you for the first time, you don't seem like the type of man to steal my sister away, or to harm your own daughter. Seeing you for the first time makes me so sick, makes us all so sick, that we just want to retreat into the very darkness that you sent us into."

Hector closed his eyes as she continued, her voice laced with spite and anger. She quivered in her speech, her eyes breaking out those tears she'd worked so hard to keep away. "You don't know how much was lost in those ten years. Mom walked, I got engaged, Veronica got hired on with a big time modeling agency, Victoria's beginning her career as an art teacher, and Vixen is heading into dance. All these things were things to be _happy_ about, but were we happy? No! Why not? Because we didn't have Valerie. You stole her from us, but the fact that you treated her like a daughter…it relieves us only a little, but still breaks our heart." He nodded as Vanessa took a deep breath, now she wanted to speak about Jeremy.

"To Jeremy, we would like to say it simply: We hope you burn in hell, your soul rots and your body is eaten away by flies, maggots, and every other obscenity out there. How _dare_ you ever lay a finger on our beloved Valerie. Your death couldn't come swift enough. That you died from a fall wasn't good enough, you deserve worse, and I hope. No, I pray…you get _much_ worse spending your days in hell. For you are the sole destroyer of lives, of homes, of _peace_. Good riddance."

She returned to her seat and the judge looked for any of the others in the family area to rise. Sam couldn't bring herself to and was debating on running to the bathroom. Her stomach wasn't treating her kindly and was lurching every which way. Amy did get up to speak, saying how she wasn't sure she could forgive Hector, but she would work on it because she knew holding a grudge forever did more harm than good. Freddie even spoke, his words were not much different than Amy's, but they were harsher. The final person to speak was Valerie. She met his eyes with her tear filled eyes. She didn't hate him, she couldn't.

"Hector, in the last ten years, my best friends were Sam and Gibby. I lived in fear, but not of you, but in fear of Jeremy." Hector smiled sadly and felt his heart lift up a bit, it meant a lot to know that she hadn't feared or disliked him. "I can see how we were all like a family, a bit dysfunctional at that, but a family nonetheless. True, I looked up to you almost like a father, because I didn't have my own father…you treated me as such. I know you've caused a lot of pain, but don't live in guilt of it. She won't say it, but Sam agrees with me. I speak for both of us, to you from your daughters, both blood and by…figurative appearance."

Sam closed her eyes as Valerie took a deep breath and held Hector's eyes. The strong man looked ready to crack, to break, to fall to his knees and weep. "From Sam's perspective, you hurt her, caused her so much pain. Granted you were drunk most times and you were out of your head the first time, it doesn't dull the pain, nor does it make things any better. You were still wrong, she wants you to know that. She wants you to know that she won't live in fear of you, and like I have, in the past ten years, has seen a worse demon than you. That demon was Jeremy…" She cringed when she said his name. She hoped never to have to think of that man again.

"You were not there the day he knocked Gibby out, the day he tried to…rape me as well…" Hector's stomach tightened and his eyes instantly looked to a bucket beside his feet. This was the guilt eating at him, the guilt coming up. "He did nothing, I want you to know this. Don't feel guilty for having not been able to do anything. It was out of your control, and we are aware that perhaps, you feared him in ways as well. Hector, Sam and I want you to know, that we _do_ forgive you. We _will_ move on." He took a deep breath, his body shaking horribly as he closed his eyes. "It will be difficult, Sam acknowledges this, but she refuses to let herself be beaten by everything. Neither of us will forget you, likely for different reasons, but we will always remember one thing…like Gibby did, you did your best to keep Jeremy at bay whenever you could, and for that, we thank you. To Sam, that bond between a girl and her father is torn beyond repair…but to me, you could never, _ever_ replace or fill the void left by my real dad, _but_ to me, as a father for those ten years, you weren't too bad. I say this because you did let me have a life, you were so lenient on me where you weren't with the boys. Sam thinks that if Jeremy wasn't filled with such hatred, that you would have done the same for her…you allowed her to roam free during those ten years, it was Jeremy that kept her from truly going anywhere. Maybe, maybe you can rest easy with this thought on your mind: You did the best you could during those years. In reality, that's all that really makes someone a father, is to do the best they can…To Jeremy, we have nothing to say at all for that asshole…That is all."

Soon, he was led away to his cell, the words of Valerie resting fresh on his mind. He would be imprisoned with those words there. They also came from Sam, in a way. Valerie and Sam must have worked on their feelings together. He sat on his bench and put his hands to his face, where he wept bitter tears. His heart was swelling up, but breaking at the same time. He was finding it hard to live with himself. He loved those girls, and truly hoped for the best in their lives. Hopefully, they would be happy one day. Now, he just needed to figure out what to do with the time he had left in this world. His death was bound to come in just a few years.

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Just a few more chapters left. You see this was different than the fight in the original, but it could be taken as possibly a bit of Hector's daydream. I think he just wanted to turn himself in and the only reason he took Angie was because he had a few questions and possibly wanted to see his granddaughter one last time.


	43. Friends to Lovers

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:Cue sugary sweet chapter.

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Chapter 43 (Friends to Lovers)

Seven years later, Rachel and Derek made their way along Spring Street and the Alaskan Way Viaduct. They wanted to see the docks and sea together. It was a peaceful morning, despite the fact that there was to be an execution later that night. "So how's your mom taking things, Derek? Is she going to the execution tonight?"

"She says she has to have that closure in her life, so I guess so." He pushed his hand through his shaggy brown hair and stared ahead at the water. They both knew their mothers had, over time, sent letters back and forth with Hector. Sam, not so much, but Valerie had done so pretty often. They both had a little six year old sibling. Rachel had a younger brother, Kyle, who had been conceived by Jonah pretty soon after she'd left that mansion. Derek had a little sister named Serenity, she followed Angie around everywhere. "Your mom and dad going to the execution?"

"Yeah, but they're looking for someone who can watch Kyle. They don't want him to see the execution." Derek agreed that it was for the best. His parents were doing the same with Serenity, she was too young to have to see something like that. Angie, on the other hand, was thirteen and insisted that she go. So she was definitely not babysitting. As they made their way out onto the docks and finally stopped walking, Derek placed his hands on the railing and looked out at the water with a smile, letting the breeze cool his face. Rachel smiled at him and rested her head upon his shoulder. "It's really a beautiful day, isn't it?"

"Sun's shining, water's blue as ever, minimal clouds in the sky, you're standing here with your head on my shoulder. Yeah, I'd say it's a beautiful day." He smirked and Rachel blushed heavily while laughing nervously. She wrapped her arm around his and looked out at the sea, trying to push down the blush running across her cheeks. She could feel his intuitive eyes upon her and she knew he would be smirking so proudly, most likely pleased with himself for making her blush. As if he didn't do that constantly enough on a daily basis. "Now you see, I got you to blush, so I'm happy."

"I bet you are...asshole." She pushed him playfully and he laughed. He quickly sidestepped her, moved around behind her, and wrapped his arms around her upper body and arms. She laughed and called out. "Hey! No fair!"

"There's nothing fair in this world, except maybe your hair. Which is in my face." She had long, wavy hair. It was deep brown and constantly groomed. Rachel didn't let herself stay dirty for very long. She stuck her tongue out and smirked deviously. As Derek raised his eyebrow, she tilted her head back and rubbed her hair a little closer. "Ah!" He coughed in surprise and shook his head.

"Hah!" Rolling his eyes, he smiled and squeezed her gently. She grunted contently and relaxed into his arms. "You know, Hank asked Lilly to the junior prom." Derek lifted his eyebrows and placed his chin on her head. He was about a foot taller than she was, but that was an estimation. She stood at five foot seven, he was six foot two. "Seems appropriate." Those two were practically together more than Derek and Rachel were, so it did not come as a surprise that they'd wind up together.

"My two best friends are guys, so I wouldn't know how it feels to have your best friends begin dating each other. Unless they know something they're not telling me." Rachel giggled and closed her eyes, cursing herself mentally. She hated giggling and tried not to do that in front of him. Especially since he always ended up saying it was cute, and making her blush. "Aww, you're so cute when you giggle." Her eyes widened and a blush swept across her face once more. She could feel him smirking at her.

"Of course…" She wanted to smack him for that, it was a cheap shot. She didn't care, though. She was perfectly fine in his strong arms. He worked out pretty regularly. Surprisingly, he looked a lot like Freddie, but with some muscles. He was on the school football team, and having the time of his life. "As far as junior prom goes, I don't think I'm going to go."

"Oh? Why not?"

"Same reason as you."

"You think it's a cheap attempt to mimic the senior prom and that there should be only one, so you want to wait until the senior prom before you can get that chance?" Rachel blinked and peered back at Derek. Not in so many words, but yes, that was her reasoning. "Hey, maybe you'd become prom queen if you went."

"That's the _senior_ prom."

"You mean it doesn't happen in junior prom? That's a shock to me!" She pressed her lips together and shrugged. So maybe he was right, there were prom kings and queens chosen for junior proms. It didn't make her want to go. "I'd rather spend junior prom…" She moved her arms out and placed her hands over Derek's hands, which were resting gently upon her waist. "Dancing beneath the stars at the park, holding my lover close to me while he holds me in his arms…" She closed her eyes and breathed deeply as she imagined herself dancing arm and arm, swaying with her date. "Not a care in the world. He'll gaze into my eyes so lovingly and whisper sweet, sweet words. He'll tell me he loves me, that he's always loved me, and he'll kiss me, then carry me off into the night." Derek's eyebrows lifted as he closed his eyes and grunted once.

"That's a very romanticized view you have there."

"Hey it could happen!"

"Sure it could. I believe that. I guess that means you're ready to date, huh?" She shrugged and sighed, she was unsure about the whole dating realm. She'd only heard tidbits about dating from her mom. Her mom and dad were both _very_ careful to watch the boys that Rachel was around. They didn't want anything bad to ever happen to her. They wanted to be able to trust whatever boy she wound up with. She had a feeling, though, they would like the man she liked.

"Well I am sixteen now, my parents are willing to let me date. The only issue is, there's this guy I like…" Derek frowned and looked up to the sky. He'd never really asked her if she liked anyone, and if she did, he couldn't help but to wonder who it was. "Flirts with me all the damn time." He raised an eyebrow and chuckled to himself. That was a pretty big hint she just dropped.

"Oh he does? And does he make you blush like I do?" She gasped and turned around in his arms, narrowing her gaze into his eyes.

"All the time! How did you know?"

"Face it, we've known each other for a _very_ long time. I know you, Rachel Williams, and you know me."

"I bet you don't know the guy I like."

"I bet you I do." He was a smart guy, he picked up on things rather quickly. That was something that Rachel adored about him. He smirked into her eyes and held her tighter. She jumped briskly and placed her soft hands on his shoulders. "But you may have to give me some more clues as to who this guy is."

"Okay…let's see here." She hummed and held his gaze. Unconsciously, the corners of her lips turned upwards and she started to feel the heat rising in her body. "Well, he knows a bit of what hell is like, same as me."

"Oh?" Now he was just playing clueless, for the effect. He enjoyed playing around with her like that, but at the same time, he was being very serious.

"His favorite color is orange, he's my age, and we go to school together."

"Hmm, still sounds like it could be Hank." He tightened his embrace just enough to make her squeal. She lowered one hand and smacked his hands, narrowing her eyes and grinning.

"He loves to mess with me and calls me cute all the damn time."

"But you _are_ cute, Rachel!" She blushed as Derek continued to hold her gaze. She had such beautiful eyes, they matched perfectly with her soft, luscious hair. Unaware of what he was doing, he started grooming his hand through that beautiful hair, which caused her blush to deepen. She moaned softly and closed her eyes as he caressed her. "You're beautiful, is what you are. You should never let anyone tell you otherwise."

"I don't think anyone ever has, but then…not many have ever told me I was beautiful." She opened her eyes and lifted her eyebrows up, her heart was starting to pound inside her. She was so pressed against Derek that he could feel her heartbeat, and it was like music to him. "H-He's very romantic and is my best friend…"

"Ooh, the friend zone. Yikes." He winced as Rachel rolled her eyes and smiled. At least he wasn't stuck in the dreaded friend zone. No, she wanted him pretty badly.

"He makes just about every girl swoon and fawn over him."

"Does he do that with you?" He ran his hand through her hair once more, causing her to stutter a bit in her speech. Her legs were almost like butter, and if he wasn't holding her right now, she'd be on the floor. "Does he make you feel safe?"

"All the damn time. I just don't get it, this feeling that comes over me, the power he has over me."

"Love, perhaps? Maybe you've fallen pretty hard for him?"

"Has he…fallen for me?" Derek gazed at her with a powerful intensity. It was a loving gaze. He was strong, he was handsome, he was everything she wanted in a man, inside and out.

"Yes. I'm certain the environment isn't as good as the park…"

"Doesn't matter to me…"

"Well then." He smiled and moved his head a bit closer to her. She gasped and her lips parted as her breath shot back into her throat. "I have always loved you, Rachel."

"Derek…" She let out a soft moan and wrapped her arms around his neck. She couldn't believe it was finally happening.

"But tell me, am I that guy you've been talking about?" Blood rushed to her cheeks. He pulled her close and she eyed his lips hungrily.

"You know the answer to that."

"I do.

"Would you…always protect me? Keep me safe?"

"No matter what. I'd also like to make that park vision of yours a reality, if you would like."

"I would love that." Her heart's pounding increased. She closed her eyes as she felt his warm breath upon her lips.

"You know I'm not one to ask before I do things, but would you mind if I kissed you right now? It's becoming very hard to resist…" She smiled and shook her head, she wanted him to kiss her. She wanted so bad for that feeling. She closed her eyes as he drew nearer. The second his lips made contact with hers, the fire surged throughout them. It wasn't like fireworks going off. No, it was much better than that. It felt so right, so beautiful, so perfect. Her cheeks flushed as her body heated up and her heart started skipping several beats. She thought for sure she would faint in his arms.

When they parted their lips, he looked into her eyes and smiled as she slowly breathed out, trying to recover from the kiss that had blown her away. "Derek, I…I never felt that before…"

"First kiss, I suppose? It was definitely mine." It was a perfect feeling for him as well. He was glad that she was finally his. Oddly, though, they felt like they were not alone, as though someone were watching. "What are the chances one of your aunts has arrived to pick us up?" Vanessa was going to pick them up from the docks when it was time to get ready for the execution. Since they had been walking and knew it would be a while before they could get back home, they had asked her if she'd pick them up while their parents got ready.

"Well…" Rachel looked over Derek's shoulder and saw Vanessa leaning against her minivan. She was watching the two and smirking dangerously. Rachel knew Vanessa rather well and was mentally preparing herself for the teasing of a lifetime. She knew Vanessa was the one that saw this moment coming, so there was a lot of 'I told you so' coming their way. Derek closed his eyes and sighed.

"She's right behind me, isn't she?" Rachel laughed and parted from Derek, waving joyfully.

"Hi, Aunt Vanessa!"

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Ooh, well this was an incredibly nice chapter, hope you liked it. All the way down to Vanessa, haha XD.


	44. Worth It

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

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Chapter 44 (Worth It)

Vanessa smiled and waved her fingers, speaking in a singsong tone. "Hi there little Rachel. Hello Derek." Derek huffed and slumped his shoulders. He knew what was coming. He turned around as Rachel ran and hugged Vanessa. He folded his arms over and smiled as Vanessa turned her pleasant gaze on him.

"Am I in trouble?"

"By me? No…but when her daddy finds out you've been kissing his little girl…" She smirked and Derek's eyes widened as his heart began to race. Jonah was one of the best weapons specialists around nowadays, he made a living out of _making_ guns. A lot of his guns he sent to the military and they paid a hefty sum for his work. Rachel laughed once and pointed playfully at Vanessa.

"Now Aunt Vanessa, you know Daddy wouldn't do anything to Derek! He's happy with him!"

"Yeah, I know. I just like messing with your boyfriend. So he actually _is_ your boyfriend now?" She smirked as both Derek and Rachel blushed. Raising an eyebrow, she watched the two get in the backseat of her car. "Uh huh, that's what I thought." Once in the car, they saw Vanessa's husband, Kent seated in the front passenger side.

"Hi Uncle Kent!" Kent looked back at Rachel and smiled, happy to see niece. He moved his eyes over to Derek and lifted his eyebrows. Each of Rachel's uncles were deathly protective of her, and rightfully so. He was fortunate that they all liked him. Rachel looked at Derek, who was staring blankly at the seat in front of him. "Derek, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm good, just know that you have a big family." Rachel laughed and hugged him from the side, kissing his cheek. When she did this, she heard two children in the backseat gagging. She looked back and saw her cousins, five year old Jackson and three year old Megan.

"Kissing is _gross!_" Jackson shouted out. Vanessa laughed as she entered the driver's seat and looked back at her children.

"It's a natural thing, kids. Give it about ten years and you won't be saying that."

"Never!" Kent chuckled as he turned back around and leaned back in his chair. Vanessa started up the car and started up. At twenty nine years of age, Victoria was the only one of Rachel's aunts that wasn't married yet, but she did have a boyfriend. Like the other men involved with the sisters, he too learned about the past. It was like a requirement, the men _had_ to accept the demons, the skeletons in the family's closet. If not, they weren't good enough. Some men were scared off, because they didn't want to think they might have to play 'counselor' with their girlfriends. This wasn't the case, but they had been vain. It hurt the girls a lot, and only Kent really understood what they had gone through, as he had been with Vanessa before Valerie was ever brought home. The men that married Veronica and Vixen, along with the man who was with Victoria, he had sat them down individually and had a long discussion with them. They all understood and had become protective of Rachel and Valerie.

"So Rachel, did you hear the news?" Rachel looked to Kent and shook her head. "Victoria said Kevin proposed to her this morning." Rachel gasped and nearly jumped up in her seat.

"That's great! Oh my god, I'm so happy for her! He's not bothered at all by what happened in the past?"

"No, thankfully enough. She's gone through enough men scared off by that whole drama…" Rachel nodded and Derek raised his eyebrow. Victoria had been the one to suffer most. Where Kent accepted Vanessa right off the bat, never having been bothered at all by the demons lurking around her family, and Vixen had been engaged to one guy before she told him about what her family had gone through, and he broke up with her, it was Victoria that suffered the most. She'd dated many guys who were warded off by what her family went through, each of them being concerned that she might have 'nightmares' and other stuff that they just didn't want to deal with.

"Well he's a good person. I'll be glad to call him Uncle Kevin one day!" Vanessa looked into the rearview mirror and smiled at Rachel.

"You do already, dear."

"Because I saw he was a good person!" She knew she had it much worse than any of her aunts, because they suffered second hand while she suffered first hand. So she had been afraid that any guy that came across her would run away when she told them what she had gone through as a child. Hell, she hadn't even told Hank and Lilly what happened to her until they were all thirteen or fourteen, she was so scared of how they'd react. They had to tell her several times that they didn't think any less of her, that they were her best friends and they'd always be there for her. It was much like Cara and Johnny had been with Angie, which made her feel really good about her friends, considering Angie told them right off the bat what she had gone through. It meant a great deal that the people they cared about accepted them. Derek was the only one that never told anybody about the past, he just wasn't one to talk. Rachel looked at him and saw him looking out the window. "Do you think you'll ever tell Zeke and Todd about your past?" He blinked and looked over at her, it seemed absurd that she'd even suggest that. "I mean they are your best friends, but you don't treat them like that."

"Why would I tell them about my childhood?"

"Have they ever asked? I mean, I'm sure they know what your mother went through…it made the national headlines."

"Yeah they know, and yes, they've asked."

"You never told them?" He shrugged and placed his hands behind his head. Looking into the rearview mirror, he saw Megan and Jackson playing with toy dinosaurs. He never had that luxury when he was younger. It drove him crazy. "Don't you wish you had someone to talk to about it all? I mean hell, you don't talk about it much with even me…It's not healthy to keep it all bottled up inside, that's what Uncle Tyler says." Tyler was the one who married Veronica, he was a 34 year old guidance counselor. Despite that fact, he never had to give his wife any counseling, she kept very good control over her emotions. She had to, she couldn't let her emotions get the better of her when she was still an up and coming model. She had to look her best!

"I do perfectly fine." His best friends did know he had troubles, and sometimes they would try to goad it out of him. They wanted to be a friend to him. Sure, most guys don't talk about that sort of thing, never one to get emotional, but it never hurt to have friends who you knew you could trust.

"You ever think they think you don't trust them? Angie told her best friends right off the bat, I told Hank and Lilly…when I did, they wondered why I didn't tell them sooner. You've known Zeke and Todd for how long?"

"Eh, give or take a few years…" He met them when he was about six, and back then things were still hard on him. When his brother's remains had been found, it made things even worse on him. It didn't help when Zeke and Todd started asking about that. Thinking to himself, maybe Rachel was right. Maybe he should tell them. It was just the thought of that scared the crap out of him. "Maybe…maybe they won't disappear. Who knows." Rachel placed her hand on Derek's and smiled softly at him. She knew he had always hardened himself, saying that he had to be tough, but sometimes that was more of a problem for anyone than it was a good thing.

"If you do decide to, I'll be right there. Okay? You know, being honest with your best friends just makes your friendship a bit stronger. Believe me, when I told Hank and Lilly, they were so supportive of me and the bond we had just grew more solid, we're at the point where it's like nothing can destroy our friendship." Vanessa and Kent looked at each other and smiled for the two, they were proud of Rachel. She had grown so strong over the years. "When will you see them again?"

"Well…They're actually going to be at the execution tonight."

"Really?" That was a surprise she didn't expect. Derek chuckled and rubbed the back of his head.

"Yeah, Zeke's dad is the executioner and Todd's pop is the minister."

"Wow." So they were probably a bit more involved than anyone thought. Then again, the fact that their dads were in that position didn't mean they knew anything. Although, if they were going to be there, and they'd see the whole family, they would definitely suspect things. "Well, will you tell them then?"

"I…" He sighed and closed his eyes. She was right, they deserved to know. If they were going to be his best friends, then he needed to be honest with them. They'd already acknowledged that it wasn't their business to know if he didn't want to tell them, but he knew it hurt them to think that he couldn't trust them. "I guess I will. They'll see us all and probably wonder what's going on." Rachel smiled and squeezed his hand gently. She admired his courage and hoped he would go through with this. Not wanting to talk about it anymore for now, he looked back to the two kids, then to Vanessa and Kent. "So, who's going to watch Megan and Jackson?" Vanessa hummed and looked in the mirror for a second.

"Victoria is watching all the younger kids. Since Kevin proposed to her, they don't want to go to the execution. So, they get to watch all the kids!" Rachel's eyes widened and she cupped her hand over her mouth.

"That's a lot of kids!" Serenity, Kyle, Megan, Jackson, and even Veronica had two children. One was four year old April and two year old Max. Vanessa and Kent's one year old son was probably already with Victoria. "I guess Aunt Victoria's already watching over Randy?"

"Yeah, she picked him up, but Megan and Jackson insisted they come see you and Derek." The two kids looked up at the mention of their names and grinned happily as Rachel looked back at them.

"We love you cousin Rachel!"

"Aww, I love you too!" At least Vixen and her husband, Vaughn, didn't have a lot of kids. Yet. She was seven months pregnant with a son. They were going to name him Vinson, and keep true to the family tradition of naming all their children with the letter V. Rachel turned around, thinking about her family and beaming with pride, she couldn't help but to love the fact that she had such an extensive family. "Granddad Bryant was really happy to have lived so long and to have seen mom's family grow like it did." He loved all the kids like they were his own great, great grandchildren. He had been extremely proud to even have lived long enough to see Kyle's birth. It was a very sad day when he passed on, but he always said he didn't want anyone to cry at his funeral, for he lived a long and happy life. "I miss granddad…"

Derek squeezed her hand and she placed her head on his shoulder. If he were still alive today, he'd be one hundred and seventeen years old. Sadly, he passed away at the age of one hundred and fifteen. He didn't want to live to see Hector's execution anyway, he didn't care much about that man. He just wanted to live to see his family _happy_. So, he died a perfectly content man. "He got his wish, though, Rachel." She smiled a tearful smile and nodded as she closed her eyes. "He wanted to see his great grandson happy, his great, great grandchildren happy, and are you happy?"

"Yes, very happy."

"Then you know he's happy." They were amazed that even Jonah's grandfather, Ryan, was still alive. He was very sickly nowadays, though. Ninety-six was a hard age to live to. He wanted to outlive even George, but the old timer put the bar so high, he didn't think he'd make it. He did say he'd be just happy enough to make it to one hundred. For him, it wasn't so much age that mattered, as the quality of his life. He did say that despite those ten years of hell, the rest of his life had been fantastic.

"Are you happy, Derek? I mean, are you really, truly happy?" Derek didn't have to think much on that question. After all, what was there to frown about? His life as it was now was pretty good. He didn't have that many sleepless nights anymore, even though he would sometimes wake up in a sweat, but that was a rarity. He smiled and placed his hand around Rachel's waist.

"Yes, very happy." The kids in the back moaned and Megan piped up.

"Are you two going to kiss again?" Rachel blushed and Derek laughed, he couldn't help but to appreciate the innocence and wonder of children. He looked back at them and smiled as Megan held up her toy dinosaurs, two triceratops. "This is Rachel, and this is you…" She started pushing the two toys together at the faces and made kissing noises. Rachel's blush deepened while Derek closed his eyes and laughed a bit harder. Vanessa and Kent had to stop themselves from cracking up, but it was difficult to do so. Megan looked up innocently and smiled. "Am I going to have another cousin soon?" Vanessa coughed and nearly slammed on the brakes, but resisted the urge. Derek and Rachel paled and their eyes grew wide.

"Uh, no…not by us. Maybe Aunt Vixen."

"Oh, okay." Vanessa breathed out and Kent covered his mouth, snickering uncontrollably. She slowly glared at him, but it didn't stop him from laughing.

"I'm sorry honey! It's just, I can't stop laughing…oh god that's hilarious!" Rachel growled and Derek lifted his eyebrows, trying to recover from what just happened. It was shocking that a three year old girl would even suggest something like that, but she didn't know any better. Derek rubbed her head and smiled at her.

"I can assure you, it will be a long time before you have any cousins coming from Rachel." Though he certainly can't say he never thought about sexual things, what sane person _didn't_? He just preferred not to think lustfully of Rachel, his eyes were only filled with love for her. "Megan, you probably won't understand till you're older, but you have a very beautiful cousin. I love her with all my heart, and I'd never, ever take advantage of her feelings." This made the occupants of the car smile, it comforted everyone to know where Derek stood on matters. Though, true, Megan and Jackson didn't get it, but it wasn't important for them to understand. For when he said this, he was looking into Rachel's eyes, as though telling her exactly how he felt. It was important that she understand it, that Vanessa and Kent understood as well. "I will never do anything to hurt you, Rachel. Never." The next person to speak was Vanessa, eyeing Derek closely.

"Glad you two love each other so much, you've been through a lot, you deserve some happiness in your lives. I'm proud of you two." They smiled at her as she turned into Victoria's driveway. Everybody else was already there. "You deserve each other, I think. Just keep this in mind, Valerie was pregnant at sixteen. We'd really rather _not_ have the same thing happen to Rachel." Derek paled as he met Vanessa's eyes through the rearview mirror. They were so challenging, daring, almost promising some extreme pain if Rachel ever ended up a pregnant teenager. "We're clear on that, right?"

"I would never…" Rachel eyed him with a smirk and he yelped, now he was starting to feel the pressure. "I mean, when the time is right, preferably on the honeymoon, yeah…but before then, I would never do that to her, and I…" Kent looked back and mouthed for him to just shut up and run from the car as fast as he could before the girls trapped him in a place he didn't want to be. He pulled at his collar and chuckled nervously, opening the door slowly. "Everyone's waiting, so let's just get out now, okay?" Now he was nervous, if that came from Rachel's favorite aunt, imagine what would come from her father. His eyes met Jonah's as he got out of the car. This was the man who saved Valerie's entire family, went into the eye of the storm, survived Jeremy's rocket launcher, and developed mass weapons. He knew in his heart he'd never hurt Rachel, but if he ever did fuck up royally, then _damn_ was he screwed! Not only that, but her aunt Olivia was one tough as nails pilot in the Air Force. He knew this family was tough, but he didn't mind, because her love was worth the strictest family in the world, if needed.

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Little kids, so cute XD. So I hope you've enjoyed this chapter.


	45. Closure

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N:

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Chapter 45 (Closure)

"Daddy!" Rachel ran over to Jonah and hugged him. He smiled cheerfully, noting that she was in high spirits. She was often happy after spending time with Derek, but this was the happiest she'd ever been. It struck him curious as he looked up to Derek, who smiled happily at him.

"How was your day, Rachel?" Valerie walked up to them and rubbed her chin. The look on Rachel's face was very familiar to her. If she didn't know any better, she'd say something big just happened between the two of them. Rachel saw her mom's inquisitive stare and started to blush, she knew very well her mother was analyzing her time out with Derek. Jonah raised his eyebrow as Valerie slowly smiled at her daughter. Rachel smiled back at her and faced her mom.

"Valerie sweetheart, you're practically glowing." This made her blush harder as she gave her mother a tight hug. All Valerie's sisters began to surround her, wanting to see Rachel's face. Something made this girl extremely happy, and they wanted to know what. Derek sighed and looked up to his father, who was smirking at him. Angie and Sam were talking to each other, probably about what Rachel and Derek must have been doing. "Is there something you would like to tell me, dear?" He would have hoped to have waited before announcing the start of their relationship, but it appeared that would not be the case. Even his father seemed to see right through him. Rachel looked at him, as though asking if she could announce it. He smiled and nodded his head. He really felt like climbing to the roof of his house and shouting out to the world that he and Rachel were finally together. Rachel took a deep breath and came out with it.

"Derek and I are finally together!" Jonah lifted his eyebrows up and Valerie gasped for joy as she hugged her daughter.

"Oh my god, I'm so happy for you, sweetie!" She grinned as she heard Veronica say it was about damn time. Victoria cheered and Vixen simply smiled at them. Derek stepped forward and took Rachel's hand in his, moving his eyes over to Jonah, who looked far too serious. He wasn't displeased, he was extremely happy for the two, but he still wanted them to be very careful. Jonah lips moved upwards a bit as he placed his hand on Derek's shoulder, holding his stern gaze.

"Son, you know she's been through a lot, she's had it rough." He nodded as Rachel's eyes drifted over. She felt her heart lifting up, her father _never_ accepted _any_ guy that liked her. Hell, Hank was her best friend, never thought of her as more than that, and Jonah still watched even him. Even though he was dating Lilly. "You know to treat her right, and I trust you will. Don't ever hurt her, because you know if you do, you may have to deal with her aunts and her mother…" Jonah looked to the women as they all nodded their heads briskly, though they didn't appear as stern as he was. He took a deep breath and slowly exhaled as he moved his gaze back to Derek, who continued to stand at attention. He wasn't going to interrupt, speak out, or do anything that might upset this man. He always had the utmost respect for Mr. Brown. "Now I know you're Freddie's boy, but that doesn't change the fact that if you were to ever do anything to hurt my daughter, to break her heart, it isn't her mother or her aunts you'll have to worry about."

"Sir, I'll never do anything to break her heart. She's an angel, she deserves to be treated as such."

"Yes she does." Jonah closed his eyes and lowered his hand from Derek's shoulder, standing straight up and looking to his daughter. She wasn't sure what to make of this, it was amazing that Jonah was so open about their relationship. At least, it seemed that way. She knew this was going to be about as good as it gets as far as his initial acceptance. "I know you'll treat her right, Derek. You Benson men aren't bad guys at all. I'm proud that my daughter's able to find her heart in your eyes, and vice versa."

"Thank you. I will treat her right."

"I know you will. Now, we have to get going, before we're all late…" Jonah stepped next to his daughter and smiled as he gave her a hug and kissed her forehead. "I'm happy for you, Rachel."

"Thank you Daddy!" Derek smiled, though he was resisting an incredible urge to collapse to the floor. He was exhausted because, honestly, he expected a lot scarier things to come from Jonah in that instant. He moved over to Freddie, who smiled at his son.

"Dad, I _think_ Rachel's dad accepted me." Freddie laughed and pat his son's shoulder. He knew Jonah was appearing strict and firm, but it wasn't hard to see that inside, Jonah was more than thrilled about this.

"Yeah well, that may be the best you're going to get, son." Derek thought on this for a second, looked to Jonah, then shrugged.

"Eh, works for me." After a few minutes, everyone started getting into separate cars. Derek sat in the backseat with Angie in their family car and started driving off. Angie tapped him on the shoulder and smiled.

"Hey bro, guess what!"

"What?"

"Johnny, Cara and I are going to start some online thing like Mom and Dad had!" Derek raised his eyebrows as the parents looked at each other, slightly nervous. They weren't too sure if they liked the idea. "It's going to be fun! Johnny gets to be the camera man."

"Well it sounds like it'll be fun." It was a new thing for her, an exciting thing. The support of her family meant the world to her. "Just be careful, okay? I mean, who knows what could happen in something like that."

"Well mom and dad ended up fine and Carly became an actress." She knew a lot more was at stake for them, though. Cara's real mother was Carly, she knew this, but nobody else really did. If something like that got out, it would be very problematic. Johnny's dad was a secretive man, hell he even suspected his dad may be involved in criminal organizations. It was strange where they got their wealth from. As for her, she was well known too, but not in any good ways. "I don't think there's anything to worry about, honestly."

"Me either, but you know, you can never be too careful." Derek looked into the rearview mirror and saw Jonah's car behind them. He was driving with Valerie riding shotgun, in the backseat was Rachel and Olivia. Behind them was Vanessa driving her SUV, Kent in front passenger. Veronica and her husband were in the seat behind them, and behind them was Vixen with her husband. Behind Vanessa was Vincent, driving a van with Viola, Michael, and Ryan. "This is going to be a hell of an ending to this day." Angie's face softened and she nodded her head. To see her grandfather executed, it was going to be hard, but again it was closure. "Zeke and Todd are going to be there. Their fathers are working tonight." Sam frowned and looked back, she knew how he felt about not wanting them to know about his past. This could be hard on him.

"Will you tell them?"

"I have to. No choice now, and they deserve to know…they're my closest friends, I'm going to have to trust them with this."

"We're all here for you, honey."

"Thanks Mom."

Once everyone arrived at the execution site and everyone was situated, they wheeled Hector into the room and set him in front of the screen. Rachel sat next to Derek and saw him looking away to the right, she glanced over to see what he was looking at, and there were his two best friends watching him with confusion on their faces. They were both concerned and wondering why he was here for this man's execution. Then they thought about who the man was that was being executed, he was the one that had his mother hostage for a long time. Rachel squeezed Derek's hand and whispered to him. "See, now you see they should know."

"Yeah, I know…" The minister began reading scriptures as Hector met everyone's eyes. Seeing him still made Sam incredibly sick, but she was coping. In the last seven years, at least he seemed more like a normal father than anything, at least in actions. Everyone stared seriously as the executioner prepared the vials. Hector was given the chance to speak to those in the room.

"I don't have much to say, other than I pray each of you are at least living happily. Sam, Valerie, I am proud of who you two have become and the families that you have raised. When I was released nineteen years ago, I had not planned on doing the things I did. I planned on being a father, but I was shaken and destroyed by someone with an eviler intention. I did things that were unforgiveable. In these last seven years, I thank you…for giving me that chance, even though we have never been in the same area again. You are my daughter, Sam, and you will always be my daughter." Sam's breath hitched and she brought her hand to her left eye. Freddie placed his hand on her free hand and squeezed it for comfort. "Valerie, I am grateful for you, for who you have become I am happy that you, like Sam, are having a great life. To your family, I say my sincerest apologies, nothing I can say can erase that pain…To Angie, and to Derek, and even you, Rachel. I am sorry that I have put you through a hell that no child deserves to go through." Derek's face tightened and his friends looked at him with more concern. What hell had he gone through? "I only hope that today, tonight, this night gives all of you some sort of closure…To my wife…" Amy couldn't bring herself to look at him, she just couldn't. He destroyed everything she had been, he tore her daughter away, she perhaps wanted this day to come more than anyone else in that room. "I wish my evil ways never happened, and then they wouldn't have clouded the sincere love I felt for you, and for our child." Amy gasped and her eyes darted to him as tears stung them. "Goodbye." He looked to his executioner and nodded his head, he was ready.

Everyone held their breaths as his bed lowered and he closed his eyes. He wanted to know if this would be painful. He didn't feel it when the man stuck the needle into his arm. He did, however, feel the cool liquid run into his veins like water. His eyelids twitched as his body began to relax. It was almost like water, cleansing him. He didn't know where he was going to go, to be honest. He knew he didn't deserve heaven and was possibly sure he'd be on his way to hell. If he went to hell, he'd be okay with that.

The families watched as the medical examiner checked his pulse and looked to the clock, signaling the time of death. Everyone breathed out and watched in a somber silence. They all felt the closure gripping at them. Rachel put her hands to her eyes and leaned onto Derek's shoulder, crying. Not because she was mourning Hector, but because the feeling of closure was so powerful and overwhelming.

Slowly, everybody began to move around and stand. Zeke and Todd made their way over to Derek, who was busy talking to Rachel, Angie, and Freddie. They wanted to catch him before he ran off. He saw them coming and looked to Rachel. Freddie and Angie went on to other things while Rachel took Derek's hand in hers. "Okay Derek, are you ready?" She breathed out softly and he nodded his hands. His friends stepped in front of him and folded their arms over, their eyes reflected the concern and confusion in their hearts.

"Hey man." Zeke smiled sadly and Derek motioned for them to follow him to the chairs. They all moved to the chairs and took their seats. "I didn't know you knew that guy personally."

"Yeah, I never like to talk about it." Zeke looked to Todd who merely shrugged his shoulders. They were on the football team as well, so they definitely had a good muscular build. Zeke had spiked blonde hair while Todd had feathery brown hair that covered the tops of his ears.

"Well, you know…we're your friends, so if you ever do."

"I know." Rachel rolled her eyes and looked to the side, they were being really vague about the whole thing. It didn't _have_ to be awkward. They probably just needed a bit of an icebreaker. She took a deep breath and exhaled sharply.

"So, Derek, you going to let them know that you and I are finally a couple?" Derek's eyes flashed wide for a minute and his two friends grinned slyly at him.

"Seriously dude! Finally?" Zeke laughed and smacked him on the shoulder. "Dude, we've been telling you for _how long_ now that you needed to ask her out?" He chuckled nervously and Todd laughed.

"Dude, I swear I saw someone trying to ask her to that junior prom a while back." Derek raised his eyebrow and Rachel blushed. It was just some guy who was really into her, he gave up after a while. "She kept turning him down because she was 'waiting' on someone. So what finally kicked you into gear, man?"

"Uh…" She, of course, felt very proud of herself. She felt like it was her dropping hints to him that made him finally ask her out. "Being sixteen, she was finally ready to date, and her father won't kill me." Zeke crossed his arms and smirked.

"That _you_ know of."

"Yeah, well, I've known her long enough and…she's kind of worked her charms on me. We've been through a lot together." Derek smiled and placed his arm around Rachel's waist. "I can't think of anyone I'd rather be with."

"So we're happy for you. I guess your life's turning around?"

"Yeah."

"We know you don't like to talk about it, and we don't like to ask, but we're kind of interested-" Derek lifted his hand up and closed his eyes. Zeke quieted and Todd leaned back in his chair.

"Hector Puckett took my mother away when she was sixteen. Rachel's mom was forced to join with these men, with this one guy who basically pulled the strings. Rachel was born in captivity, as was I…" Zeke and Todd swallowed and nodded, feeling the anxiety rise a bit inside them. So far, it sounded horrible. How could anybody do something like this? "Mom was sexually assaulted and I was conceived, along with my twin brother…"

Todd raised his eyebrow in surprise and tried to think about any siblings Derek had. "Your twin?" Then he remembered, when they were nine, the media reported finding the remains of a child belonging to Sam. His heart sank as Derek's body tensed up. "Dude, I'm so sorry…"

"It's okay…There was a time I wished it had been me, I would have these nightmares all the time, but it's gotten better. I realize now, I guess everything happens for a reason. If not for Adam, my little sister would be dead." Zeke and Todd gasped and looked towards the door, they saw Angie talking with her friends who had made it. She must have been born in captivity as well. "Rachel and I were just three when this one guy, Jeremy…he hated mom and Mrs. Brown…he tried to kill us. Rachel's mom took us to her dad, but couldn't stay because it wasn't safe…so we spent the next six years of our life in fear that we would never see our mothers again."

"But they're safe now," Zeke stated calmly. "Your mom, her mom, you guys, your little sister…you're all safe, and that's what is important." Derek nodded his head as Rachel squeezed his hand. He was trembling, but it was very difficult to notice. Opening up like this was hard as hell, he wouldn't even be able to do it if Rachel wasn't right there. She was practically a saint to him. "Why didn't you ever tell us, man? We could have been there if you ever needed someone to talk to…" Todd agreed and Derek raised an eyebrow.

"Because I…you two were my best friends, and I thought if you knew I…had issues like that." Zeke and Todd rolled their eyes and stared at Derek seriously, causing him to start feeling a bit nervous.

"Dude stop. The key word in there is that we are your best friends. You think we'd just stop being friends with you because you had a problematic past?" Todd narrowed his eyes and spoke up as well, his voice was filled with some irritation, annoyance, but kindness as well.

"We've all got bad stuff that's happened to us, granted, probably not as bad as you. Either way, that's what friends are for, there to lift you up when you need something. It hurts that you wouldn't trust us, though we can sort of see why you might not…"

"I know, guys…" He looked down, guilt rising up in his heart. He honestly felt sick, and wasn't sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing. Rachel squeezed his hand again and he looked at her, smiling a bit. He looked up and sighed. "I suppose I've always just had to be stronger, didn't like to have to feel like I needed to lean on anyone." Zeke clasped his hands together in between his knees and nodded.

"Yeah, I can understand that. But you know, it doesn't make you stronger to bottle things up, it makes you stronger to have friends who can lift you up when you're down. That's what makes you stronger. Now, what do you say we all go down to that arcade and kick ass?" Zeke and Todd smiled at their friend and stood from their seats. Derek laughed and stood.

"Okay fine, anything to clear my mind, I suppose." Rachel looked at the friends and wiped her eye, she had a tear coming out. She was so proud of him for trusting his friends and so happy that they were supportive of him. It was something he really needed, and she could see that. Now, maybe even he could finish his healing. He didn't need to go it alone, he didn't need to carry the world upon his shoulders, and she didn't love him any less for allowing himself to open up. If anything, she loved him more. The boys made it to the door and Derek turned to see Rachel still in a bit of a trance, staring at him with a wide grin. "Hey Rachel, you coming?" She shook her head and quickly stood up.

"Yeah! Sorry about that!" She ran next to him as Zeke and Todd laughed and pat him on the back. He felt really good, as though the ton of bricks weighing him down were gone. Now he could breathe, he could move freely. It didn't get much better than this.

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Hope you enjoyed this chapter, review this one and the next which I'm posting up tonight because it's getting closer to the end. Chapter 48 will be the last.


	46. Rewriting History

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N: Here we go, chapter 48 will be the final, so I'm posting 45, 46 and 47 up at the same time. Review em both if ya will ^_^. Enjoy this, you'll like this one. Definitely want you to review this one and 47, because I want your thoughts on them. 48 is just really long because it's the final chapter, the epilogue, if you will.  


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Chapter 46 (Rewriting History)

Three years later, Timmy sat with Gregory and Landon, discussing what they wanted to do. Gregory was, at this point, pissed off with Angie. For she had never stopped messing with them and he was constantly reminded of his father. He blamed her for his father's death, he would always blame her. Timmy wasn't too sure if he liked how Gregory was going on and on constantly, and Landon just did all he could to remain neutral. He didn't want to get too involved.

"I'm doing this whether you want to or not!" Gregory slammed his fist down on the table and growled at Timmy. Landon shouted and grabbed his smoothie as it nearly fell over and spilled out. He sighed and looked over to see the teenage daughter of T-Bo, she now ran the store in place of her father. She was not as nice as he was, though. At least not to Landon. If he spilled his smoothie, she wasn't cleaning it up and she wasn't giving him a free one. He'd pissed her off a few years ago. Gregory stood from his chair and glared at Timmy. "Landon! Get your ass up and come with me." Landon frowned as Timmy looked over to him.

"You better not, Landon! Fucking stand up for something once in your life!" Landon winced and felt Gregory's intense glare on him. He was really afraid of Gregory, despite the fact that he didn't agree with ruining Angie's life. He thought the girl ought to be left _alone_. She wasn't doing anything except having a damn good time on the webshow she was doing with Johnny and Cara. She was moving on with her life.

"Landon!" His voice roared and Landon rolled his eyes. Why the hell was he being forced to make this decision? What was in it for him, anyway?

"Landon?" Now Timmy was shouting. It was all too much for him and he was beginning to get a headache. He didn't sign up for this. He wondered if this was what his father had to deal with. Pity he never knew that man. Never knew his mother, either. All he ever saw of his father was what he saw on parts of the old iCarly reels, which were nearly nonexistent nowadays, twenty years after its ending. Even Nevel had a webshow of his own, but those were even harder to come by. He sighed as the boys shouted at him again, probably wondering why he was in any kind of trance. He felt Gregory's murderous glare and whined as he slowly stood up, looking at Timmy apologetically.

"I'm sorry Timmy…I really am, but it's Gregory." Timmy's eyes widened in shock. How could he do this? Gregory wasn't all that strong? Hell he'd beaten the guy to a bloody pulp before. Landon shouldn't be afraid of him. "I'm sure he won't do anything…" Timmy quickly stood up and shouted, the veins in his neck popping out.

"He wants to fucking rape and murder an innocent girl! You think that's _right?_"

"I'm sure it's all just talk."

"Look at who the fuck his father was!" Gregory rolled his eyes and started dragging Landon out. Landon whined and looked apologetically once more at Timmy, who was now gripping the table so hard his knuckles were turning purple.

"I'm sorry Timmy! I don't have a choice!" Timmy's face darkened as he watched the two depart. He bowed his head and muttered under his breath.

"The hell you don't…" He'd gotten into fights with Gregory over a girl the boy hated. Her name was Violet, she was dating someone named Noah. He was jealous of her, nobody really knew why. Timmy was really good friends with her and did a good job of keeping Gregory at bay. An man, about the age of twenty eight, stepped next to him and clicked his tongue.

"With friends like that, who needs enemies." Timmy lifted his head up and wiped his eyes. He'd been clenching his teeth so hard that he was sure his gums were bleeding. He looked at the man and his eyes grew wide, he was almost the spitting image of his father!

"Holy shit, _dad?_" His jaw fell and the man laughed, his laughter was very deep and profound. Timmy took a step back and eyed the man from head to toe. This couldn't be his father. His father was dead. Victor said Gibby was found without an arm or leg and very bloody. "It isn't you, but holy…"

"No, you might be referring to my older brother." Timmy's eyes widened again and his eyebrows rose. Brother? His dad had a brother? Yes, he did, he remembered from seeing some iCarly videos. He had a little brother, Guppy.

"Guppy? But I thought…I thought they killed…" Guppy frowned and shook his head sadly.

"Actually I haven't been called 'guppy' since the seventh grade. I've gone by my full name: Julian Gibson." Timmy nodded as Guppy pointed to the chairs. "Have a seat, Tim." Timmy continued to stare at him while grabbing the chair behind him and pulling it out, slowly falling into it. Guppy turned a chair around and sat backwards on it, leaning forward against the back of the chair. "My grandfather and I are both alive and well. He actually taught me to cut hair, I'm a professional barber and own a chain of men's barber shop in Seattle." Guppy pulled out his driver's license and placed it in front of Timmy, who gaped at it in shock.

"You're Julian Gibson, really? You own _Gib's Cuts?_" He never even put two and two together. He always got his haircuts from that place, though. Guppy smiled and nodded his head.

"Named it partly after my brother, Gibby." The shock leaving him, he started to realize that he'd spent his entire life in pure hell. He thought his dad's entire family was killed by Jeremy and Hector! He had to live with a crime boss for most of his life!

"Where the hell were you?" Guppy closed his eyes, understanding Timmy's anger. Timmy started to stand up, wanting to hit this man for what he thought was abandonment.

"I never even knew you were alive, to be honest. When my mother and father was killed, when Gibby disappeared…I was with my grandfather, we were in upper Washington, fishing, when we got the news." Timmy's face softened and he slowly sat fully back, perhaps he should listen more and try to understand. Guppy was clearly hurting, remembering the memory. His eyelids were creasing over and his body was tense. "Grandpa nearly had a heart attack, we did not even return to Seattle for the longest time. When we did, we found his house ransacked, but it sat that way for at least a year."

"Oh my god…" Guppy opened his eyes and stared at the table. He'd gone through a lot of fear then, a lot more fear than an eight year old should have to go through.

"Grandpa made it his duty to raise me right. I never stopped thinking I'd see my brother again…" Timmy frowned as Guppy narrowed his eyes. "Then I find out ten years ago, he was dead. My brother…was never coming back…" His stomach clenched and his hands closed up. He shook off the feeling of tears threatening him. He'd spent many sleepless nights then. "I'll never forget what he wanted to be before his disappearance. Before he started working for…that man…"

"What? What did dad…what did he want to be?"

"A pro wrestler." Timmy smiled and felt his heart rise a bit. He never knew anything about his father. This was amazing news, no matter how small it was. "I spoke with Freddie after finding out about my brother's death. Both he, Valerie, and Sam were able to fill in almost all the details of his life during those ten years."

"Oh?" Timmy looked up into his uncle's eyes, eager to know as much as he could. "Uncle Julian, what…what was my father like?" Guppy didn't want Timmy to know the bad parts, even though he probably already knew.

"Your dad…was a good man to Valerie. He took care of her, protected her from Jeremy." Timmy felt a sense of pride hit him. This was exactly what he thought of his father. "He entered in with poor intentions, true, but in dying…he died so Valerie and Sam could be free from that prison. He died so he could be free of that hell, so he could be with your mother."

"You think Dad's with mom right now?" Guppy smiled proudly and nodded, he felt that without a doubt, his brother was up there watching over them.

"No doubt about it, kiddo." He patted Timmy on the shoulder and took a deep breath. "Your father was a great man, always standing up for what he believed in and willing to protect those who needed protection. Why, I remember when he rescued Freddie, Carly, and Sam from a crazy woman!" The two laughed at the memory and Guppy wiped an eye, he really did miss his brother. "She had them hostage and they managed to reach out to him. He went in and she started fighting with him, he fought back and did pretty damn well."

"My dad…he wasn't a truly bad man…" He'd always been confused about this, wondering where his heritage truly was. Whether he was the spawn of evil or not. Guppy straightened himself in his seat and smiled as he placed his hand over the other.

"Your father was a man of many morals, who made mistakes like anyone else does. He made a grave mistake that cost him a lot, but in the end…he died the man that he truly was. He died for what he believed in, he wanted to destroy the bad side of him that he had become…which I suppose is why he decided death would be the best option…but that's just who he was."

"I see." Timmy closed his eyes and smiled, thinking of who his father must have been. He was proud, and he was truly growing into who his father was. "How, how did you finally find out about me?"

"You appeared on that girl's webshow a month ago. Freddie's daughter." Timmy gasped and his eyes brightened. So that's what happened, that's how he finally learned of him? "Told the world what you did for that one girl, Violet." Timmy chuckled nervously as Guppy clasped his hands together in front of his face and leaned forward, smiling. "Just like what your father would have done. What he did do for Valerie. You bore an uncanny resemblance to my brother, it took me a while to get over my shock, and then I called Freddie up to figure out who you were. He confirmed you were Gibby's son…"

"Wow. I…" He couldn't believe it. He never thought something like this could have happened. He smiled and leaned back in his chair. He was so happy.

"Didn't know how I'd get ahold of you though, because he said Angie didn't keep in touch with you. Told T-Bo about it when he came in for a haircut one day, then I get a call from his daughter today." Timmy grinned and looked over at the woman behind the counter, he smiled and waved at her. She couldn't know just how happy this made him. "Tell me, who's been taking care of you all this time?"

"Some guy…who can't possibly be ruined…" In truth, Timmy hated Victor. He knew all about his dealings with the crime organization and he was disgusted by it. He slumped forward as Guppy raised his eyebrow. "Uncle Julian…Victor Oswin is the man who runs a major crime syndicate and he supported Hector during all this time." Guppy's eyebrows rose sharply as Timmy clenched his hands up. "He's a dangerous man as any. Got tired of supporting Hector and let him stay on death row, but if he wanted to, he could have got him off. He has money, and nobody else has the money to take him out. He gets the best lawyers, he gets the best doctors, he's got the best corrupt police agents…_nobody_ dares take him out."

"Is it possible to hold him responsible for the events leading to my brother's death?" Timmy thought about this and shrugged, he couldn't be sure, to be honest. He knew Victor supported Hector, but it was Jeremy that controlled everything. Though Victor did support them too, he gave them all money to thrive.

"He made them who they were."

"I see." Guppy sighed and pushed his driver's license back into his wallet. "Well. I _am_ just a lowly barber who owns a chain of barbershops that help me to make my millions." He felt a sense of hatred rising for Victor, a feeling of anger towards this man who contributed money to keep Hector and Jeremy's operation going. He wanted to _destroy_ him. Timmy raised his eyebrow as Guppy smiled at him. "I would like to take you in. You are my nephew, my brother's son." His voice started to crack, much to his annoyance. "I want to take care of you. I think I can, I can definitely get custody…"

"Uncle Julian, I would love that. I…" Timmy's eyes started to tear up and he wiped them away quickly. He didn't want his uncle to see him cry, but it was too late. "I've never known what it's like to have a family…" Guppy folded his arms over and smirked slightly.

"Well I do own one of the best mansions in Seattle. I have a beautiful wife named Molly, who is my world. She would love to meet you." Timmy grinned as Guppy took a pen from his chest pocket and began writing on a piece of paper. "My grandfather's still alive and would be more than thrilled to meet his great grandson." He clicked his pen off and returned it to his pocket, handing the paper to Timmy. "This is my number, my wife's number, and my address. Feel free to contact us any time."

"Thank you." Maybe this was it, maybe his life would turn around now. His eyes widened and a gasp left his throat, he almost forgot about Gregory and Landon! "Shit! Angie! They're going to hurt her! I need to stop them!" He quickly flew from his seat and started towards the door.

"Not on your own, you're not. It's too dangerous." Timmy pressed his lips together and nodded as Guppy got up from his seat and pulled out his cell phone. They ran to his car and started driving, calling up the police department to help. Timmy contacted Gregory, deciding to lie to him and try to pinpoint exactly where he was going to go. He was going to make his father proud, he was going to redeem his father's good name, which had been blemished with his mistakes.

"Gregory!"

"What do you want?"

"I've had a change of heart!"

"What?" Gregory's voice was laced with venom. He didn't believe Timmy, he needed to prove himself first. "A change of heart?"

"Yes. Let me know where to meet you. I'm pissed with Angie too, man. She…she fucked up my life." The words made him sick. He looked to his uncle, who kept his eyes on the road. If anything, Angie may have just _saved_ his life and he wanted to thank her. This was how he would repay her for being the one to start the ball rolling in his reuniting with his uncle after all these years.

"You're serious? Those are strong words."

"Yeah." He put malice in his voice. Gregory _had_ to believe him. Gregory tapped his chin and hummed while Landon begin feeling even sicker. How could _Timmy_, of all people, suddenly want to hurt Angie?

"Fine, then you'll prove it when we capture her and take her to the Cliffside."

"The Cliffside?" Guppy moved his eyes over to Timmy, who nodded at him. He nodded back and took a sharp U-turn.

"Yes. Landon and I are going to do our thing and then shove her off the cliff." Timmy moaned inwardly and shook his head. He was tempted to roll down the window and spew chunks all over the place. He _really_ had to save her now. "Damn messed up about this is our 'surrogate dad' doesn't agree with this. Well fuck him! He can go fuck himself with a spoon for all I care!"

"You're a very angry person, you know that?"

"Shut the hell up." Timmy rolled his eyes and sighed, placing his hand on his stomach. If Gregory was just like his father, then how the hell could Gibby deal with Jeremy?

"Whatever, just tell me what you want me to do…"

"You're going to take first hit. If you refuse, we kill you." Timmy closed his eyes and swallowed. Guppy eyed him carefully and slowly nodded his head. Timmy couldn't do anything to raise suspicions or doubts.

"Fine." He clenched his eyes shut and breathed out slowly. After a second, he opened his eyes to narrow slits and spoke with venom in his voice. He was going to tear Gregory's head off when he saw him. "I'll do it." Gregory smirked and clicked a gun next to him. He was prepared for if Timmy turned on him.

"Good to hear, pal." Landon paled and eyed the gun. What would his father have done? He knew in his last moments, his father finally stood up for what was right. Hell, his father was the one that started everyone on the path to saving Sam and Valerie. He was too much of a coward, though. Gregory scared the shit out of him. "We'll see you soon after we catch Angie. You better be waiting for us at the Cliffside, we _will_ go on without you."

_"No. You won't. You won't get close."_ Timmy clenched his teeth together and clicked off the phone as Guppy pulled onto the only Cliffside around. This was it.

* * *

The next chapter is going to be the big fight. There's a reason I'm posting it up at the same time.


	47. Showdown at the Cliff

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N: Here you are, the big showdown.

* * *

Chapter 47 (Showdown at the Cliff)

Finally, Johnny had asked her out! Angie was so excited, even Cara couldn't calm her down. She was all over the place. Johnny asked her out on their webshow, a lot like how Freddie had first asked Sam out. "Cara! We're going on our first date on Saturday!" She squealed and laughed happily. "Can you _believe _it?" Cara laughed and jumped with Angie.

"Yeah girl, I'm proud of both of you!" Angie hugged Cara tightly. Cara hugged her back, then took a step away. "Now, I want you to take a deep breath, and chill." Angie stopped and stared at Cara, blushing. "Don't make me have to call your grandfather and say you're disturbing the peace!" Angie laughed once more and shook her head. Old Henry wouldn't do anything. Sure, he was still the chief of police, they making him Seattle's longest chief of police at ten years. He was only sixty six, so he was looking to retire sometime soon.

"Grandpa would probably tell you to just let me destroy everything." Cara laughed and shook her head. Somehow, she couldn't see that happening. Angie's phone started to go off, but it was in the other room on the end table. Her grandfather was calling her, trying to warn her. He'd received a call from Julian 'Guppy' Gibson, saying that someone was after her. "Anyway Cara, I'm going to go pick up my sister from school. You want to come with?"

"No, mom's coming into town today, so I need to get home." Angie nodded as Cara gave her a goodbye hug and smiled at her. "I'll talk to you later, okay? Then you can finish up with your excited rant about Johnny, okay?" Angie giggled and felt the blood rush to her cheeks. She actually couldn't believe she just got overexcited like that, but it had been a long time coming. "So where is Johnny now, anyway?"

"In trouble with his dad, again." Johnny had said a _little_ too much about his suspicions about his father. This pissed Victor off quite a bit, but he was not one to harm his son. Johnny just did not understand. "I'll give you a call later, okay?"

"Okay." The girls walked into the living room and said their last farewells of the day. Once Cara was gone, Angie grabbed her phone and looked at it curiously. She had a missed call and one voicemail. Clicking the button for her voicemail, she listened to the words of her grandfather, fear starting to rise in her.

_"Angie, stay in the house, stay in your bedroom. I just got word, somebody's after you. I'm on my way over, I have also sent some of my men to the location given to us. Please, stay in the house! If someone's with you, have them stay with you."_

"Shit!" She clicked her phone off and ran to her door, stepping outside in time to see Cara driving off. "Cara! Wait!" She was beginning to panic now. Who was after her? What was going on? She turned her gaze to a black car sitting down the street a bit. Her heart started to race as she slowly shook her head in disbelief. This couldn't be happening, not to her, not after all the crap that had already happened to her. Just as she was about to turn back into her house, someone threw a sack over her head. "No!"

"Shut up, bitch!" She gasped as the person wrapped her arms around her. She recognized that voice, it was Gregory!

"No! Please!" He lifted her up as she started kicking, trying to get away from him. She screamed out and began sobbing. This _couldn't_ happen to her! She had to fight, she had to do something. Maybe one of the neighbors would hear her. She remembered what her mother always said, to never give in, always fight, and always scream everything. "Help! Somebody help!" She started grabbing at Gregory with her claws, tearing into him, trying to make him drop her. "Let me down!"

"Shut up! Quit that!" He grunted as his arms began to bleed. Why did God have to make women with such sharp nails? He breathed in his pain and shouted out to Landon. "Open the fucking door, Landon!" She gasped and tears began to drip from her eyes. Landon too? She couldn't believe this. Her body became limp as she felt herself being thrown into the backseat. She tried to move, but Gregory grabbed her and began tying her wrists together.

"Please Gregory, don't do this to me…"

"You fucking screw us over and we screw you over. Deal with it."

"No! Please! You don't have to do this…"

"Shut up." He slammed the door shut and entered the driver's side. Angie struggled against the ropes on her wrist and tried to free herself. She needed to figure a way out of this, and fast. She moaned as the car started up and her body bounced in the seat as Jeremy sped off. She needed to get this potato sack off of her head so she could see, and perhaps cut through the ropes on her wrist.

It was not long before the car stopped and she felt herself being jerked from the seat. Her feet touched the ground, Gregory's hand clenching her arm tightly as he roughly jerked her along the route he took. After a minute, he took the sack off. She yelled when she saw where she was, standing on the edge of a cliff, staring down what appeared to be one hundred feet. "No! Don't do this, Gregory!"

"Shut up, I'm not pushing you off yet." Angie's eyes widened as he twisted her around. She saw Timmy leaning against a tree, his arms crossed. She gasped and her eyes shook. What was he doing there?

"Y-You too, Timmy?" Timmy closed his eyes and scoffed, pushing himself from the tree and quenching the sickness rising in his gut. He eyed the gun in Gregory's hand, it was locked and loaded, ready to be used. He began to sweat, he couldn't fail here. Landon was standing next to Gregory, staring at the ground and frowning.

"Just shut up, Angie. You're not doing yourself any favors right now." She gasped as he started walking towards her, appearing as menacing as could be. His Uncle, along with Henry, who had recently arrived, and several police officers were hiding along the cliff. They were waiting for a call to action, but first, they needed to get Angie away from the teens.

"Timmy, why would you…I stopped pulling pranks on you, didn't I? You shouldn't want this? You shouldn't hate me…" Then again, Gibby turned against her mother, so why shouldn't Timmy turn against her? Her body throbbed with agonizing emotional pain. Why was this happening to her? Timmy's face darkened as he stepped within inches of her. He grabbed her arm roughly and stared into her eyes. She saw it there. His body said he was angry, but his eyes told her he wanted to help her.

"I said shut up. This isn't going to be easy." She whimpered and closed her eyes. It was, perhaps, of a little comfort to her that Timmy might not be hurting her. Gregory fingered the hilt of his gun and watched Timmy closely. He was about ready to kill him on the spot. Timmy jerked Angie to the side, looking at her with apologetic eyes. "Gregory, let me have a little privacy with her. I need to take her around to the trees." Gregory tilted his hand and bounced his gun a bit.

"No. You can do what you need to do with her right here. I want to _see_ whose side you're on." Timmy pressed his lips together and growled inwardly. He should have seen that one coming. But of course Gregory would say this, he never trusted Timmy. Go figure he needed a gun to deal with him.

"Fine, you want to _see _it?" He growled impatiently and turned his back to them in order to face Angie. He looked into her quivering eyes and motioned to the trees just a few feet away. She swallowed hard and caught his motion, she didn't know why, but she knew he wanted her to go to the trees. She widened her eyes and shook her head as he held her wrists in his hands.

"Please Timmy, _don't_. Don't hurt me." She would have to be brave, she knew this. She was going to be scared as hell, but she needed to have strength. Landon tapped his hands on his legs and rolled his eyes, he was pretty sure Timmy was going to die. He didn't know why, but he had a feeling Timmy just wasn't on their side.

"I said _shut up!_" He pushed his body forward, releasing her hands. She screamed and purposely stumbled backwards as his hands flew up. Gregory raised his eyebrow as he watched Angie fall back onto the ground and roll over to her hands. She wasn't hurt.

"Nice one, Tim."

"Don't do this, Timmy!" Timmy roared and lunged for her, slamming his fist down into the dirt beside her as she rolled out of the way. He stood up and she kicked out, sweeping his feet. He shouted and fell to the ground. She quickly rose to her feet, nearly falling over as she made a run for the trees. Gregory cussed and aimed his gun.

"Fuck! She's getting away!" Angie looked back and screamed out, nearly losing the feeling in her legs. She had to keep running, but the thought of that gun pointed at her was terrifying. Gregory smirked and cocked the gun. Timmy moaned as his vision readjusted. He had to admire her for that last move, it took the wind out of him. "You're dead, bitch!" His finger pulled on the trigger and Angie cried out, she was just inches from the nearest tree.

"No!" Landon shouted as he lunged forward and grabbed Gregory's arm. Gregory cursed as Landon pushed his arm aside and deflected the trajectory of the gun. His heart pounded as Timmy sat up and rubbed his forehead, shocked at what just happened. Landon swallowed as Gregory glared at him, nostrils flaring.

Angie had kept running, being pulled aside by Guppy once she passed the trees. He pressed his finger to his lips and held onto her arms, pressing his back against the tree and peering around it with his eyes. Landon took a step back, his hands shaking and sweat dripping down his forehead. Then Gregory began his abusive rant. "What the fuck are you doing, Landon? Whose side are you on?" Landon had spent a long time thinking about what his father would have done. Nevel knew when a wrong had been committed, he knew he was in the wrong, and that's why he did what he did to save Sam. Well he was in the same situation as his father and knew what Gregory was doing was wrong. His father had been courageous, despite the almost certainty of his death if Jeremy ever found out, and Landon knew he had to do the same. In order to cleanse his father's name, he _needed_ to do the same.

"What you want to do to her, it's wrong!" Timmy watched carefully as Landon stepped in between the two men and spread his arms out. "She's been through _enough_. Timmy's right about that. She doesn't need you hurting her, she doesn't need anybody hurting her! Her mom didn't deserve the hell she went through, because of _your_ father, and Angie doesn't need to go through hell because of _you._" Gregory's chest huffed as Landon felt his heart begin racing.

"You..."

"So I'm doing what's right, Gregory. I'm doing what my father knew he should have done from the start, but was too damn afraid to take a stand!" Gregory narrowed his eyes and creased his brow.

"So you're taking a stand, huh?"

"Yes! Standing up for what I believe in. My father knew it was wrong to hold Sam against her will, but for ten years he lived in fear of Jeremy. Righteously so, but if he had just taken a stand from the beginning, then maybe things could have been different!" Gregory raised an eyebrow and stared at Landon for a few silent seconds, then began having a fit of chuckles. Timmy frowned as Landon lowered his arms.

"You fucking asshole. It's hilarious!" Gregory began laughing, holding his gut with one hand and waving his gun in a circular fashion. "You _honestly_ believe things would have been different if your fucking _coward_ of a father stood up to _my_ dad! You _honestly think that?"_

"Well…yeah…" In the end, it had been Nevel who told Gibby what Jeremy tried to do to Valerie. It changed the course of events. So why, if Nevel had spoken up from the beginning, shouldn't it have possibly changed events? "You know, usually if the underdog speaks up, it inspires things…right?" Gregory laughed and placed his hand over his eyes.

"Oh god! This is too damn much! It's hilarious!" Landon frowned and began to feel the fear rising back up. He knew what Gregory was doing, he was trying to prove he was weak. He was playing on that weak notch of his, but he wasn't going to falter. No, he was going to make his father a proud man. "You should just stay quiet. I mean, hell.." He continued laughing, never ending, it seemed. "There's honestly no reason for you to take a stand. It doesn't make a difference. Actually, no, wait!" Gregory stopped laughing and held a finger up next to his face, opening his eyes wide. Landon swallowed hard as Gregory smirked. "It does make a bit of a difference. You want to know what?"

"W-What?"

"This…_traitor!_" Timmy's eyes widened as Gregory shifted his gun to Landon's throat and fired. Landon fell back against the ground, struggling to breathe. Every time he did, a whirring sound was heard. Blood splattered onto Timmy as his jaw fell. What just happened? Gregory laughed and pushed his gun into Landon's mouth.

"You should _never_ have opened your fucking mouth! A stand, my ass! You want to take a stand, here's your goddamn stand! You're nothing!" Tears fell from Landon's eyes as he met Timmy's gaze. He was still alive, and it hurt. Timmy's eyes quivered, his heart clenching and stomach lurching. "You're a goddamn sidekick, you aren't supposed to _talk_, you aren't supposed to question _me!_ I hope you join your father in hell!" Landon slowly closed his eyes and Timmy shook his head. He couldn't believe this. This couldn't be happening. Gregory fired a gunshot and Landon's body jerked.

Timmy narrowed his eyes angrily as Gregory glared down at Landon's body. He was damn proud of Landon for having stood up for something. Landon did not die for nothing, and Timmy would make certain of that. He rose slowly, clenching his fists as Jeremy shot Landon's body again. That was the fourth shot. He knew Gregory only loaded his gun with five bullets, so he could use this to his advantage. Timmy took one final look at Landon and closed his eyes. _"This is for you, Landon. May you rest in peace when this is over."_

Chances were, if Nevel stood up from the start, then maybe Gibby would have as well. If someone spoke out against Jeremy before everything went to hell, things most certainly would have been different. Timmy roared and Gregory looked up in time to be hit by a direct right hook. He shouted as he was sent flying from Landon's body. Gregory shouted as he started to rise to his feet, but Timmy sent him crashing back into the ground with a downward left jab.

"You're dead, Gregory!"

"I knew you weren't on my side, traitor!" Gregory kicked out, but Timmy jumped over him. He closed his eyes and prayed for his father to lend him some strength.

"How could I betray you, I was _never_ on your side!" Gregory's eyes widened as Timmy pulled him up and kicked him in the chin.

"Shit!"

"You honestly thought I was going to let you hurt an innocent girl?" Angie peered around the tree and gasped when she saw the sight. So Timmy really _was_ helping her. Gregory grunted as Timmy delivered several blows to his face. He'd never been able to fight off Timmy, just as his father could never stop Gibby in a rage. "I should bash your head in!"

"Fuck you, Timmy!" Gregory brought his gun to Timmy's abdomen and pulled the trigger. Timmy's eyes widened, but the gun did not fire. "What the hell?" Timmy looked to the gun and growled. It must have been a misfire. "Son of a…" He looked up to see Timmy smirking at him. He backed up and aimed the gun to him. "It was just a misfire! I know I have at least one more bullet left!" He took one last step, unaware that he was on the very edge of the cliff now.

"Then fire away, Greg." Gregory's hand shook and sweat dripped down his forehead. He had to take a chance. He couldn't let this be the end.

"This isn't the end! You hear me Timmy? This isn't the fucking end!"

"Oh…" Timmy lifted his eyebrows and bounced his head up and down for a second. "It looks like the end to me. Why don't you just give up?" The true coward was Gregory, just like his father before him, he was the weakest of them all. Gregory sniffed, his nose twitching. What the hell was this? Allergies? He rubbed his nose and growled.

"All of a sudden…" Timmy raised his eyebrow as Gregory shifted his eyes up and turned white as a sheet. His father's apparition was standing before him, glaring at him. He took a fearful step back, scraping the edge of the cliff. He shouted and became aware of it, catching himself before he fell off. He placed his hand on his chest and sighed as he looked to his father's apparition.

"What are you looking at, Gregory?"

"You can't see him?" He was so red, his father was. It was like he was cloaked in fire. Was this hell? He scrunched his nose again and groaned. What the hell was going on with his sinuses all of a sudden? He never had issues like his father did, at least he didn't think so. That illness was hereditary though, he knew that from research, but it just hadn't struck him yet. His father lifted up a hand, a spark flying from his finger landed upon Gregory's nose. Gregory's sinuses then cleared up, slowly. He breathed in through his nose as the spark sank in. Then as quickly as it appeared, his 'father' changed to a cloaked figure. Gregory's eyes widened with shocking revelation. "Muerte. El ángel de la muerte." His face twisted in horror and Timmy raised an eyebrow curiously. Had Gregory lost his mind? "El segador de almas!"

"What are you going on about? Angel of death? Grim Reaper? What?" Suddenly Gregory's sinuses tightened, that hereditary illness finally rearing its ugly head.

"N-N…" He breathed in, trying to suppress it, but couldn't. He let out a violent sneeze and started to lose his footing. Timmy's eyes widened as he grabbed for Gregory, but failed when he sneezed again, the sneeze throwing him off the cliff. "No!"

"Shit!" Timmy ran to the edge of the cliff and watched as Gregory's limbs flailed. He hadn't wanted to _kill_ Gregory, he wanted to disable him enough so the police could get him. Ironically, it wasn't he that killed him, it was a _sneeze_. Gregory's shout echoed through the air as Angie and Guppy ran to Timmy. They peered down, Gregory's face was twisted in horror and anger as he screamed, he sounded as demonic as he looked.

One hundred feet below, Gregory's body crashed onto the ground with a sickening thud, blood splashed in all directions as he glared upwards. Strangely, he wasn't completely dead yet. He could hear a shout all the way up, Angie's mother had finally arrived on the scene. At the edge of the cliff, he could see Sam embracing Angie tightly and Freddie peering down at him. Derek was there as well, pissed off. He wasn't angry that he had to miss one of his college classes. No, he was angry that someone tried to hurt his little sister.

Like his father before him, he realized now he would die alone. He slowly closed his eyes, his body losing its color and his soul leaving his body. Nobody was there for him. He gazed down at his apparition, it was the reddest he'd ever seen anything, a bright, crimson red. He frowned as a black hole appeared beneath him. Above, he saw Landon's apparition, dressed in white and next to the apparition of his father. A white light appeared above them and they were lifted up while he sank down. Perhaps, he deserved this. Red vines shot out from the black hole and gripped his wrists and ankles, thorns shot out and pierced him. He screamed in agony and his soul was jerked down. It was over.

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Hope you liked this, review this as well. Next chapter is the very last, and it's a bit longer, so I wanted to get the this one and the previous chapter out of the way.


	48. New Life

Paternal Bonds Shattered

Disclaimer: Do I need to say it? I don't own iCarly

A/N: Here it is guys, the end, the final chapter, everything comes to a close here. Please, enjoy ^_^, and definitely leave some good thoughts at the end.

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Chapter 48 ( New Life)

"Okay class, I want your addition homework in by Monday," Vanessa said as she placed her fingertips on her oak desk. Her class of first graders all moaned as they began moving from their desks. They hated weekend homework when they could spend it with their friends. She eyed the studious twins in the front row, Adam and Andy, six years of age. Ten years had passed since the events at the cliff, ever since then, everyone's lives had been incredibly peaceful. "Just remember, if everyone hands in their papers Monday, we'll have a pizza party!"

The class cheered and began filing out of the classroom. Andy was working hard trying to do as much as he could on the assignment as it was. He and Adam were supposed to go home with Vanessa. Their mother was nine months pregnant and the doctor had advised her not to drive a car, and their father was at the office, it was a long day. Adam looked up at Vanessa and grinned. "So, Auntie Nessa, if we finish this while you get ready to take us home, does that mean we get extra points?" Adam smiled innocently at her and Vanessa rubbed his head.

"Sweet Adam, my dear, dear, sweet Adam. If you think just because you're Rachel's son, that I'm going to give you any special treatment…" Adam smiled innocently and gave her a hug, causing her to laugh and pat him on the shoulder. "The cute stuff isn't going to work. I have four children at home who have attempted to use that at least a hundred times each in their lives." Jackson was now eighteen and starting college, he had absolutely no idea what he wanted to be. Megan, who was sixteen, wanted to be a nurse later on. Randy, fourteen, didn't really care what he wanted to be. He just wanted to have fun with his friends. The youngest was Sarah, she was ten years old and truly brightened up everyone's day. After she was born, Vanessa and Kent decided _no more_ kids. He got a vasectomy and she had her tubes tied. Freddie and Jonah swore never to have that seemingly fatal operation, they both felt like keeping their man parts.

"Are you sure? I mean, are you really sure?" His smile brightened and Vanessa placed a hand on her arm and smiled sweetly at him, closing her eyes and wagging her eyebrows.

"You are too cute, but it's not going to work. You get the same treatment all the other children get. It's only fair. I had to do the same with your mother when she was your age." She frowned and looked up, dear god she felt old now. Rachel was only twenty nine, but either way. Andy looked up from his paper and sighed.

"Adam, can you let Aunt Nessa get ready to go, I want to go home! Tired of being in school!" Vanessa laughed as Adam quickly jumped over to his desk.

"Okay!" Vanessa sat at her desk and eyed the two boys with a pleasant smile. Rachel and Derek were more than thrilled when they learned they were having twins. They had to name one after Derek's late brother, Adam, and give him that respect. The two married soon after finishing college. Jonah and Valerie were very happy with this, as were Freddie and Sam. Although they weren't sure how they felt about being grandparents at the age of forty. It didn't matter to Michael or Vincent and Viola, they were always thrilled to have great grandchildren. Michael being seventy six and Vincent being eighty four, they were getting too old. The next oldest grandchild was only nineteen, and that was Valerie's son Kyle. It'd be years before he had a kid!

Sadly, Ryan never got to see his great grandchildren marry. He passed away at roughly the age of one hundred. Having lived a fulfilling life, he was ready to go. Vanessa's phone rang and she answered it, her daughter was calling. "Hey Mom. Guess what Randy just did…"

"What did he do now?" She sighed and rubbed her forehead tiredly, Randy was always getting in trouble.

"Broke the neighbor's window while playing baseball with his friends."

"Megan! I told you not to tell mom on me!" Vanessa groaned softly as Megan's voice moved away from the phone.

"She was going to find out anyway."

"I'll be home in a bit, try not to kill each other, okay?" This was going to be a long day, but it wasn't anything she wasn't used to. Family life was really great now, and everyone had something to distract themselves from. It seemed everything from twenty to thirty years ago was just a thing of the past for them. Granted, they thought about it from time to time, but it was just a memory.

-NEXT-

Angie and Johnny sat in their new house, wondering what they would do with it. They were now engaged to be married, planning their wedding in a few months. Ten years ago, Cara and Angie had been offered an acting position by a director, but neither of them accepted the deal. They just wanted to live normal lives. Now, Cara was living with her parents somewhere in Hollywood, her mother was still an actress. The paparazzi had a field day when they discovered Carly's secret married life and the fact that she had a daughter, but it was worth it for the best little daughter she could ever have. "I miss Cara, you know."

"I know you do, Angie. So do I." They talked to her on the phone often. She wanted to return to Seattle one day, but not for a while. She wanted to bask in the family life with her mom for as long as possible. The whole family deal between them had been kept a secret for sixteen years, so she lived with her father and never her mother, it was depressing. "She's a great friend."

"Yeah, a lot of good people out there…You remember Timmy?"

"Ah yeah, his uncle got my dad arrested finally." Johnny chuckled to himself and sighed. Guppy had enough money to hire some really good detectives and really powerful lawyers to do some digging around on Victor. He lost all his money first, out millions, then he lost whatever connections he had as the police arrested each and every one of them. Soon it was down to nothing but the clothes on his back. Which, ironically enough, he was only wearing a pair of swim trunks in the back of his house when he was arrested. The police took his dry clothes and towel, and threw them in his pool. It took a year to accomplish everything, and another year to gather all his charges against him and find him guilty of fraud, extortion, and drug regulation. His days as a crime boss were over, and Johnny was _not_ following in his footsteps. "I can promise you this much, I'm not going to become a crime boss."

"Oh really? I think it'd be very lucrative." Angie laughed and placed her finger seductively on his lips, then started to trail down his chin. "My mafia man." His eyebrows lifted up as she leaned forward and kissed him passionately. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her back. She pulled back for a second and held her smirk. "Good, though, I don't want my future husband going to prison. Who would I have to kiss then?"

"I don't know." He smirked in return and eyed her lips. "I suppose you'd have to start making a bunch of fruits fall in love with those lips of yours." She laughed and kissed him, pushing him down on the couch and moaning as his hip pressed against hers. "God I love you."

"You love God or you love me?" She smirked and gazed into his eyes dangerously. He laughed once and rubbed his hand along her back.

"Well let's see. God brought you to me, so I love God for that. And then there's you, to the fact that I say: Oh god, I love you, Angie."

"Good!" She kissed him roughly as he pulled her close to him. He usually let her be on top, because that way she felt in control. Her life had been a mass of being out of control for so long, she just didn't want to feel trapped anymore. Her past still weighed a bit on her mind, but overall, she was living an extremely happy life, and a very sexual one at that, with her fiancé.

-NEXT-

Victoria graded some of the art projects her students did, they were very good paintings. She was impressed. Though it was her sister Veronica's daughter, April, who constantly threw a little something in her portraits in order to sway her aunt into giving her extra points. She lifted her eyes up to her niece, who was seated at her desk, smiling proudly. She sighed as the rest of the class left and April walked up to her. "So what did you think of my project, Aunt Victoria?"

"It's beautiful." She pointed to the portrait of rolling hills, deep seated plains, and gusts of wind blowing the leaves across the neon sky. "It really speaks to me. Quite literally, actually." She smirked and pointed to the pattern of the leaves, they seemed to spell out _I love you Aunt Vic_. April gasped and covered her mouth, hiding a smile.

"Oh my, how did that get there? Wow, what a coincidence, right?" Victoria closed her eyes and chuckled as she folded her hands over each other on her desk.

"April. You're a seventeen year old woman with a great talent. You don't _need_ to put subliminal messages in your portraits to gain points, when you're good enough to get an 'A' without them." April sighed and looked to the side. So Victoria was right, but hell, she couldn't help herself sometimes. It was just something she tended to do when she was younger, and she sort of grew into it.

"I know, but I feel like I have to be ahead of everyone else." Victoria nodded and tapped her pen lightly on her desk. She understood April's strive for the best, but again, it was still not needed that she try to coax her teachers into giving her more points.

"April dear, you are the _best_ artist in this class. The fact still remains that you're one of the few students that really tries in here. Most have chosen this class just simply as a way out of a calculus or chemistry class. You took it, because you like to paint." April's eyes brightened and she smiled. She loved painting. Hell, she painted a whole portrait of her family and found it funny that despite the fact that it was her Aunt Vixen with the blonde hair, she was the only one of her cousins that had golden blonde hair, not even Vixen's two children had blonde hair.

"Thanks Auntie…you know, sometimes I just still think I need an extra curve. I guess I don't, usually." Victoria shook her head and smiled. She was very proud of her niece. Just then, her younger brother hurried into the classroom. Max had somewhat short hair, but with strands of his hair that fell neatly in front of his eyes. He was fifteen years old, into rock, and always seemed to dress in all black. It was concerning, at times.

"Hey sis! School's out, are we heading home or not?" April let out a disgusted groan and passed Max, pushing her fingers on his forehead.

"Patience, dweeb. I was talking to Aunt Victoria about a project." Max rolled his eyes and crossed his arms.

"Oh really? I thought you were busy making out with your boyfriend." April paled and turned around swiftly. She knew he was taunting her about David, one of the jocks at the school that she sometimes hung around and on occasions, drooled over.

"He is _not_ my boyfriend!"

"Wouldn't know, with all the puddles you create from your mouth." April's face went red as Max smirked and waved at Victoria. He felt damn proud of himself now, as well as very triumphant. "Hi Aunt Victoria! I'd love to stay and chat, but we really have to get home! Mom's throwing a fit because she's too old to model now and has to stay at home." Victoria chuckled as she watched the two leave the room, still bickering in the hallway. Kids will be kids.

She sighed and took a look at the portrait that April had done. It was filled with such vivid colors and such passionate detail, it was obvious she'd worked hard on it. Her eyes drifted to the center of the picture, where several people had been painted. It was a loving family, surrounding a child and showering it with hugs and kisses. Smiling to herself she turned the painting over and read the back, which had the title. _Return of the Prodigal Child: A tribute._ She turned the painting back over and looked at the child in the center.

It was a girl, drawn with such detail. She had soft brown hair, a bright red smile, and deep brown eyes. Her face was round and her gaze looked warm and inviting. Victoria felt her heart lift up as she took a sip of her coffee. Perhaps she could overlook the placement of the wind-blown leaves and call it coincidence.

-NEXT-

Twelve year old Rebecca was at her Aunt Vixen's home, playing with her cousins, Vinson and Vivian. Vinson was thirteen and Vivian was eleven. Vixen sat in her living room recliner, eyeing the trophy cabinet that the kids were looking at. "Aunt Vixen won all these herself?" Rebecca looked to her cousins with wide eyes and they nodded their heads. Vinson was the one to speak up.

"She won them through dance competitions, but mostly it was her dance students and stuff." Pride shone in Vixen's eyes as the children crooned over the trophies. She had every right to be proud of every student she taught over the years. Being forty may have depressed her husband, but it sure didn't depress her. As far as she was concerned, she still had another twenty years to go! There was a lot of fire left in her. She always told Veronica that she needed to have gone into a career that she could have continued after she turned forty. Hell, the woman was lucky to have still worked until she was forty four. The trophy case started to shake when Vivian tripped and bumped into it. Vixen's eyes widened and she quickly stood up, thinking she'd have to scoop the kids out of the way. It stopped shaking and she let out a sigh of relief.

"Careful around that trophy case kids, I don't want you knocking it over onto yourselves and getting hurt." In truth, she'd rather a dozen broken trophies on the floor than to have her children or niece injured. Vivian ran over to her mother and hugged her leg.

"Sorry mommy, I'll be more careful." Vixen smiled and hugged her daughter while Vinson and Rebecca watched with a smile. The kids were always happy to know their mother wasn't a vain dance instructor who might care more about the trophies than anything else. Vinson looked to the ground and swallowed, one of the trophies had fallen off.

"Mom…"

"What is it, Vinson?"

"One of them broke." She raised an eyebrow as he lifted the trophy up. It used to stand in the form of a pirouette with one arm bent over the head. Now the raised arm was off and it was no longer standing on the box that had the tag. Vinson looked at his mother, worried that he might be in trouble. "I'm sorry…"

"It's okay, Vinson." She smiled sweetly and took the trophy. It had been one of her favorite ones, and one of her firsts. She sighed and set it on the end table. "I'll have to take it in to get it fixed. It's okay."

"Love you, Mom."

"You too, sweetheart." Rebecca smiled and looked up and spotted a family photo of Vixen, her husband, and two children. She was reminded of her family and her heart lifted up. She loved her mom. Her mom didn't talk much about her past, but it didn't seem that it affected her much. She told Rebecca that when she was older, if she really wanted to know everything, she would tell her. Right now, she didn't want to fill her daughter's innocent mind with it all. Kyle and Rachel knew more than she did. All Rebecca knew was whatever happened, happened at least a year before Rachel was born.

"Hey Aunt Vixen, I'm an aunt too, you know." Vixen looked over and smiled, nodding her head. Rebecca huffed her chest proudly and walked over to her. "So we get to share stories about being aunts."

"Yes, that's true." Vixen laughed and hugged Rebecca, wondering if the young girl was trying to say something. "Are you saying you want to share stories?"

"Maybe. I just hope my nephews and nieces love me as much as I love you, Aunt Vixen."

"Aw, well I love you too, sweetie." Rebecca grinned and hugged Vixen tightly.

-NEXT-

In the cemetery, Valerie and Sam stood at Gibby's grave. Sam looked up and saw her mother a ways off, standing at Hector's grave. She knew her mom had a lot of issues with that man, and it was hard to still care about him. What she hated, was there was a small figment in her that was left over. She still hated him for what he did to her, what he did to their daughter, that much could be said. She didn't mourn him, she was only there to close matters up for herself before she passed on. She did not have long for the world, but in the end she was happy that her daughter was happy and her grandchildren were happy. She was thrilled to have seen her great grandchildren.

"I'm dying, Hector. My heart is failing me." Amy looked up into the sky and her voice shook. "My body is truly showing its age." Della had already passed on, due to Alzheimer's and pneumonia. "Della waits for me up above. Henry will have to manage on his own now." Henry was the healthiest of them, still very agile and active in his elderly years. Della had developed Alzheimer's when she was seventy, and was not aware of the seasons after a few years. A year ago, when she was seventy five, she stayed out in the bitter cold and developed pneumonia. Amy closed her eyes and a tear dropped from her eyes. "Such a strong, near invincible woman. It seemed nothing could shake us. Of all the things, it was pneumonia that got to my best friend…and now my body shutting down…"

She wasn't even supposed to be here, but Sam got permission from the nursing home to bring her out to the cemetery one last time. "Hector. I want you to know…when I first met you, you were a good man. That little girl you molested, I overlooked it because of your drinking…" She slowly closed her hands and scoffed. He'd been drunk when that happened, he'd been drunk most times. "Somewhere, somehow, you lost your mind. We blame Jeremy for it all, but there has to be some part on your end. You let that sadistic man control you…you let him twist your mind into hurting your own _daughter_. It's an act I couldn't forgive…" She breathed in and monitored her heart's beating. It was slow and steady, seemed slower each and every day. "I had a long, good life. These last twenty years have been the best years of my life. In my old age, I have learned one thing: Never hold grudges. I've come to accept that you were mentally ill, and I can't forget the things that you have done. However, I do forgive you and I release all my judgment of you into God's hands. I won't die a bitter old woman, Hector. I won't."

Valerie and Sam turned their gaze over to see Vincent and Viola making their way to them. Vincent had two white patches of hair on the side of his head and wore a fedora to cover up the fact that he had thin white hair. He now bore a thin white mustache and was hunched over slightly, walking with a cane in his right hand. Viola walked next to him, her hand gently on his back. Her white hair was up in a bun and her eyes were bright and cheerful for an eighty year old woman. She wore a blue dress that had white dots on it while Vincent had dress clothes on. Valerie smiled and turned to them. "Hey Mom, hey dad."

"Hey Valerie, I see you're visiting Gibby." Vincent lifted his hand up and rubbed her shoulder. She nodded and looked to Gibby's grave. Sam took a deep breath and looked up as the wind rushed through her hair. Viola and Vincent peered down at the headstone and smiled sadly. They owed a lot to Gibby, they owed their daughter's life to him.

"You know, he actually started treating Sam right for the last, maybe, five years." Valerie had a big impact on him, she didn't even realize it, but her kindness had affected him in so many ways. Sam brushed her hair back and started to put it up in a ponytail. She was thankful to Gibby as well, she always would be.

"Thirty years ago today, was the worst day of our lives." Valerie closed her eyes as Sam lowered her hands and knelt beside Gibby's marker. "Thirty years ago, he lost his mind, so many lives were lost. Now, everything's better. Even Gibby's son's living a happy life with his uncle, who was fortunate enough to not have fallen victim to Jeremy's evil hands. Too far out of reach." She placed a rose beside his grave and slowly looked up to the sky. "Maybe if Gibby wasn't there, Val. You and I…might not even be here…"

"Jeremy would have killed us. Both of us. He would certainly have taken my daughter from us…" She remembered that furious chase, the one that led them to take Derek and Rachel to Jonah. If it wasn't for Gibby, Jeremy would have likely succeeded. Sam could recall a time, several times, when Jeremy would beat her, nearly killing her, and Gibby would pull him away, telling him that was enough. Sometimes he even beat Jeremy afterwards.

"He's at peace, we're all at peace. That's what really matters."

"Yeah." Valerie lifted her eyes to where Amy was and watched with growing panic as the elderly woman collapsed. "Oh my god! Sam, your mother!"

"What?" Sam looked over and her eyes widened. "No, mom! Someone call the ambulance!" Sam ran over to Amy and knelt beside her, shaking her. She knew her mom could die any day, but it didn't stop her from panicking. For her mother to die on this day, the thirtieth anniversary of the kidnapping. This was not a pleasant thing at all.

-NEXT-

At Rachel's home, she sat with her sister in law, Serenity and brother, Kyle. They were both nineteen and off of college for the weekend. She had her hand on her belly and smiled at them. She could pop at any day now. So she always needed someone around, or at least her phone nearby. "I'm only twenty nine and I'm going to have three children." She laughed happily and rubbed her belly as Serenity drank some soda.

"I think it's nice, I mean you have _twins_. They're prominent in mom's family, you know." Rachel smiled as she looked up to the clock. Her two sons should be coming home any minute now. Kyle brought a blanket to his older sister and placed it over her, as she had said earlier she was cold.

"Here you go, Sis."

"Thanks."

"So, what will you name her?" Rachel looked to her belly and sighed, she wasn't sure. To be perfectly honest, she and Derek hadn't thought of a name. Maybe something to signify renewal? It was a thought, since they were so close to such an old memory. To be done let the old memory pass away and give birth to a brand new memory, it was a renewal.

"I don't know, maybe…" She felt a sudden, stabbing pain inside of her and shouted out. "Oh my god!" Kyle's eyes widened and Serenity stared in shock, was it time? The pain hit her again and she shot up, holding her stomach and gasping. "Kyle! The car! Someone call Derek!" Serenity dropped her cup and ran to the phone as Kyle started to panic. He didn't know what to do, he'd never dealt with _this_ before!

"Oh my god, oh my god!"

"Kyle! Focus!" She breathed in as Serenity dialed her brother on her cell phone. Rachel moaned as the pain started to increase. "Get to the car, call the gynecologist, it's happening! She's coming!"

It was not long before Rachel was being rushed into the delivery room with the gynecologist sitting there. On the other side of the hospital, Amy was being rushed in at the same time. Her heart was failing quickly. Vanessa was the first to arrive at the hospital with Adam and Andy, they waited in the waiting room until her other sisters arrived, minus Valerie, who was with Sam and her parents on the other side of the clinic. It was not long before everyone was there, Derek was the last to arrive, due to his work and heavy traffic. When he made it in, he rushed to the delivery room where Rachel was with Vanessa. The gynecologist was having her breathe deeply. "I'm here Rachel!"

"What the hell took you so long, Derek!" She screamed as he placed his hand in hers. Big mistake. She clenched that hand so tightly that he almost instantly lost all feeling in it. Vanessa looked at Derek and saw the pain etched on his fight.

"She's putting up a fight, Derek."

"Who? Rachel or the baby?" Rachel screamed and tightened her grip on Derek's hand. He swore he heard something pop.

On the other side of the hospital, Sam sat in the room, watching the doctors rush to save her mother's life. Valerie and her parents sat there, waiting. They all knew there was a strong chance Amy wasn't going to make it. They weren't sure how long they'd been there, sitting there, waiting for the inevitable truth, but it came eventually. The heart monitor flat-lined and the doctor marked the time of death. Sam closed her eyes as Valerie gave her a hug.

A minute or two later, Freddie and Jonah came running in. "Sam! Valerie! Rachel just gave birth!" The women gasped and looked up at the men. They looked to Amy and frowned, closing their eyes. The second she passed, the baby let out its first cry. The doctor marked down the time of birth matching Amy's time of death.

They had a moment of silence for Amy, then made a break for Rachel's delivery room. As they made it, Henry walked into the hospital, looking around. Freddie called out for him. "This way, pop." Henry nodded and followed them.

In the delivery room, Rachel cradled her baby girl while Derek knelt with one arm around her shoulders and one hand over her belly. The two were gazing happily at the baby. Adam and Andy were standing in front of Derek, their hands on the bed and their eyes gazing in awe and wonder of their new little sister. Rachel and Derek's family and friends were surrounding them, watching happily. Rachel looked up as Freddie and Jonah ran in with Valerie, Sam, Viola, Henry and Vincent. They joined the family circle around the family as Rachel moved a corner of the towel from her baby. Everyone was silent and happy.

The baby peered her eyes into Rachel's eyes and opened her mouth in a yawn. Angie cooed as Johnny wrapped his arm around her waist. She wanted to have a baby now, but it would be a little while. They were going to wait until they were officially married. Rachel whispered to her baby.

"Eve. That will be your name. Eve." The baby Eve, born at 6:01, a minute after sundown. Rachel named her Eve, to signal new life, a new start, and a fresh memory. "You're my sweet little baby girl." She kissed Eve's forehead and continued to speak softly to her newborn baby. "On this day, our past passes away into the wind, a memory that is replaced with new birth. My precious baby girl, I have dreamed about you, for so long. Your father and your brothers, your cousins, your aunts, uncles, grandparents are all here to greet your arrival."

Eve cooed and looked around the room. There were so many faces, so many different expressions. They all looked like family. The ones closest to her, she could recognize as her father, her mother, and her brothers. She wrapped her fingers around her father's index finger. This was the best day of their lives. Sure, the passing of Amy was sorrowful, but it seemed shadowed by the birth of Eve, and symbolic for everybody. They were almost certain now, that the rest of their lives would be peaceful and quiet. For the first time in a long time, they had nothing to fear.

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That's it, the end. It's been a long run, and well I thank everyone who reviewed, but most of all I thank Penny, who actually left thoughts on each chapter. Feels good, and perhaps the only reason I managed to complete this. I loved this story, writing it was fantastic, and now that it's over...it's just...wow. Leave your thoughts on this final chapter. Thank you so much, again!


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